Chinese police detained 25 angry plane passengers who opened emergency exit doors before take-off after their flight was delayed by snow, state media reported, the latest case of rowdy behaviour by Chinese travellers.
The passengers were forced to wait in their seats for hours late Friday and early Saturday after their China Eastern flight from the southwest city of Kunming to Beijing was delayed, Xinhua news agency said.
After requesting that they be allowed off the plane for health reasons, some passengers "opened three emergency doors in an attempt to stop the flight" and forced the plane to return to the terminal, Xinhua cited a passenger as saying.
Two of the passengers surnamed Zhou and Li were sentenced to 15 days in detention for violating public order, the state-run China News Service said.
They were members of a 25-person travel group which got "overly excited", leading to the opening of the doors.
The other members of the group were detained for questioning, but apparently later released.
The passenger told Xinhua that those on board were worried that the vice captain could not control himself after he "swore and cursed", the agency said.
The plane had already been delayed for five hours before they boarded, only to face further delays while ice was cleared from the aircraft, the report said.
Others on the aircraft travelled to Beijing by another flight.
China's growing wealth has seen a boom in air travel over the past decade, but its airports are plagued with delays and incidents of unruly passenger behaviour have risen.
Last month a budget flight from Thailand to China was forced to return to Bangkok after a Chinese passenger threw hot water at a cabin attendant.
Chinese state-run media branded four unruly passengers on board as "barbarians," reporting that one of them had threatened to blow up the plane in a row over a seating arrangement.
An airport in Kunming saw chaotic scenes in 2013, when thousands of angry passengers were stranded for hours after thick fog delayed flights.
Passengers stuck at the airport for more than a day struggled with airline staff, damaging computer equipment belonging to an airline, while police broke up scuffles.
In 2012 a plane carrying 200 people from Zurich to Beijing was forced to turn back after a fight between two Chinese passengers.
AFP
Sun Jan 11 2015
Chinese police detained 25 angry plane passengers who opened emergency exit doors before take-off after their flight was delayed by snow.
Motorcycling - Marquez wins Australian MotoGP after intense battle with Martin
The 31-year-old, third in the championship standings, has now won the Australian MotoGP four times in the premier class.
Prabowo takes up Indonesian presidency, vows to tackle corruption, other issues
Indonesia's Prabowo Subianto on Sunday took over as president of the world's third-largest democracy, vowing to combat internal issues
Nepal's Sherpas deserve more, says teenager who scaled world's 14 tallest peaks
Sherpas are known for climbing skills that make them the backbone of mountain expeditions.
Inside the underground lab in China tasked with solving a physics mystery
China will soon collect neutrino data, aiming to unravel one of particle physics' biggest mysteries.
Millions in Cuba still without power as major outage persists
Millions of Cubans remain without electricity because of a prolonged outage at the main power plants on the island, Anadolu Agency reported.
Surge in Gaza violence increases famine risk, monitor says
About 1.84 million people across the besieged Palestinian enclave are living through high levels of acute food insecurity.
Israel pounds Beirut and Gaza after rockets hit Israel's north
A drone was launched at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's holiday home.
Elon Musk promises to award $1 mil each day to a signer of his petition
He awarded a $1 million check to an attendee of his event in Pennsylvania aimed at rallying supporters behind Donald Trump.
Former special forces commander Prabowo to take up Indonesian presidency
Indonesia's Prabowo Subianto will take over as president of the world's third-largest democracy after sweeping the country's election with policies like free meals for school children
Father of Malaysian Islamic banking, Abdul Halim Ismail passes away
His dedication and pioneering spirit played an important role in shaping the journey of Bank Islam as well as leaving a lasting impact on the development of Malaysia's Islamic finance industry.
Zayn Malik postpones US tour dates after One Direction bandmate Liam Payne's death
Payne, 31, died on Wednesday after falling from a third-floor hotel room balcony in Buenos Aires, shocking fans of the boy band.
Why voters in a handful of swing states will decide the US presidential election
The contest will almost certainly be decided by just tens of thousands of voters a tiny fraction of the populace in a handful of states.
INSIGHT - Sudan's war risks 'lost generation' of children
A devastating crisis is unfolding in Sudan, where the most vulnerable members of society children are bearing the brunt of the violence.
Who is Prabowo Subianto, incoming president of Indonesia?
A wealthy ex-general with ties to Indonesia's popular outgoing president and its dictatorial past, looks set to be its next leader.
Trump says he would impose tariffs on China if China went into Taiwan
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said he would impose additional tariffs on China if China were to "go into Taiwan,"
Iran's supreme leader says Hamas leader's death will not halt 'Axis of Resistance'
The "Axis of Resistance", built up with years of Iranian support, includes Hamas, the Lebanese Hezbollah group, the Houthi movement in Yemen, and various Shi'ite groups in Iraq and Syria.
Putin says Russia willing to seek compromises between Iran and Israel
Russia is ready to help seek compromises between arch-foes Israel and Iran, President Vladimir Putin said on Friday, saying these would be difficult but possible.
What proposals will Russia push at the BRICS summit?
The proposal is also to establish a BRICS reinsurance company to allow uninterrupted shipment of goods and key commodities between members.
Indonesia's free meals plan in the spotlight as Prabowo readies for office
Prabowo calls the programme one of the main drivers of economic growth, eventually set to add an estimated 2.5 million jobs.
Astro AWANI's revamped English news website, AWANI International, launches on Oct 21
Astro AWANI's revamped English platform delivers in-depth global news and expert analysis to keep you informed on key developments.