A passenger boarded a Boeing 777, then opened a door and fell out of the plane
An Air Canada passenger boarded a Boeing 777 and then opened a cabin door, Global News reported.
The person fell onto the tarmac below, and emergency services were called.
The incident delayed the flight’s departure to Dubai by about six hours.
An Air Canada Boeing 777. Robert Smith/Getty Images
An Air Canada passenger opened an aircraft door and fell about 20 feet to the ground, Global News first reported.
An airline representative told Business Insider the incident involved a Boeing 777 at Toronto Pearson International Airport.
The spokesperson said the passenger “boarded the aircraft normally” but then opened a cabin door instead of going to their seat.
The representative added that the person sustained injuries from the fall and emergency services were called.
Data from Flightradar24, a flight-tracking site, shows Monday’s flight from Toronto to Dubai took off almost six hours late. It was scheduled to have 319 passengers on board.
An airline representative said: “We can confirm all of our approved boarding and cabin operating procedures were followed; we continue to review the incident.”
It’s the second time in less than a week that a passenger’s unusual behavior has delayed one of the airline’s flights.
British couple died on holiday after adjoining room fumigated for bed bugs
The Steigenberger Aqua Magic hotel in Egypt’s Red Sea resort of Hurghada, where the couple fell ill.
A British couple died from carbon monoxide poisoning while on holiday at a luxury resort in Egypt after the room next door was sprayed with pesticide to kill bed bugs, a coroner has found.
John and Susan Cooper were staying at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in the Red Sea resort of Hurghada in August 2018, when the room next to theirs was fumigated with a pesticide, ‘Lambda’, for a bug infestation, the UK’s PA Media reported. In some countries, Lambda is diluted with the substance dichloromethane, which causes the body to metabolize or ingest carbon monoxide.
The fumigated room, which was sealed with masking tape around the door, was connected to theirs with an adjoining door, according to PA.
The married couple returned to their room for the night but were found seriously ill the next day by their daughter. John Cooper, 69, was declared dead in the room, while his wife Susan, 63, died hours later in hospital.
Kelly Ormerod called the past few years “the most traumatic and emotional time” following her parents’ deaths.
Dr. James Adelely, senior coroner for the English county of Lancashire, ruled that the deaths were caused by carbon monoxide poisoning as a result of inhaling the vapor from spraying the pesticide which contained dichloromethane, PA reported.
“To this day, our family struggle to comprehend what happened,” the couple’s daughter Kelly Ormerod, who was on holiday with her parents at the time, said in a statement following the inquest.
“It should have never been allowed to happen”.
She said that “nothing would make up for the pain and loss we felt since that day,” adding: “The last few years have been the most traumatic and emotional time for all of us involved.”
A passenger aboard a South Korean flight opened an emergency door moments before the plane landed — sparking caught-on-video chaos and panic among the 194 passengers in the wind-swept cabin.
The Asiana Airlines Airbus A321 was about to land in Daegu after a flight from the southern island of Jeju on Friday when the passenger pulled the emergency exit handle at an altitude of about 700 feet, officials said.
Some of the other passengers tried to prevent the person from reaching the door but it partially opened, sending air whipping throughout the cabin as terrified fliers gripped their armrests.
Among the 194 passengers onboard were several teenage athletes who were on their way to a weekend sporting event in Ulsan.
At least a dozen people suffered minor injuries in the harrowing incident before the plane landed safely, according to the Transportation Ministry.
Several showed symptoms of breathing difficulty and were taken to a local hospital, Yonhap reported.
“It was chaos with people close to the door appearing to faint one by one and flight attendants calling out for doctors on board through broadcasting,” a passenger told the local news outlet.
“I thought the plane was blowing up. I thought I was going to die like this,” the 44-year-old added.
One teen’s mother told the news outlet: “Children quivered and cried in panic. Those sitting near the exit must have been shocked the most.”
The suspect, identified only as a man in his 30s, was arrested at Daegu International Airport and confessed to opening the door, but would not say why he did it, CNN reported.
Witnesses told local media that the unhinged passenger also tried to jump out of the plane.
“It is difficult to have a normal conversation with him,” an official said, according to the BBC. “We will investigate the motive of the crime and punish him.”
Geoffrey Thomas, an aviation expert with Airline Ratings, described the incident as “very bizarre.”
“Technically, it’s not possible to open those doors in flight,” he told CNN.
He said winds of about 170 mph would have been passing the plane when the door was opened.
“It seems implausible that the door could be opened in the first place and then against the airstream technically impossible, but somehow or another it has happened,” Thomas added.
The Land, Infrastructure and Transport Ministry said an aviation safety official would check whether there was an abnormality in the plane’s maintenance, CNN reported.
Dubai’s Emirates posts travel warning over killer Marburg virus
Travellers are advised to postpone trips unless absolutely necessary
Dubai’s Emirates has posted a travel warning on its website for customers travelling to Oman due to the confirmed break of the killer Marburg virus. The warning was issued by the Omani authorities to all airlines.
The advisory was issued on Thursday, stating that “those who have travelled from the impacted countries must isolate themselves and seek immediate assistance if they feel unwell within 21 days of travel.”
The warning was issued upon instruction by Oman authorities, advising travellers to postpone trips to countries affected by the Marburg virus and take precautions if the travel is urgent.
Oman’s travel advisory on Marburg virus outbreak
The issue statement reads, “Due to the confirmed outbreak of the Marburg virus in the Republic of Tanzania and Guinea, customers arriving in Oman, and who have travelled from the impacted countries must isolate themselves and seek immediate assistance if they feel unwell within 21 days of travel. The Oman authorities also advise travellers to postpone trips to countries affected by the Marburg virus and take precautions if the travel is urgent. Further details are available on the Oman Ministry of Health website.“
The Oman Ministry noted that note that efforts are being made to contain the outbreak in its current geographical scope.
Precautions to avoid the highly infectious disease, as per the Oman Ministry:
Avoid direct contact with patients with symptoms like fever, muscle ache, and skin rash, as well as avoid visiting areas affected by Marburg Virus Disease (MVD).
Avoid contact with blood and other body fluids, in general, from other people.
Avoid contact with fruit bats or visiting mines and caves inhabited by these bats.
Avoid contact with animals such as chimpanzees and gorillas.
Travelers who are infected with fever, chills, muscle pain, skin rash, sore throat, diarrhea, weakness, vomiting, stomach pain, or unprovoked bleeding from anywhere or bruising during or after travel (till 21 days) should isolate themselves from others and head to the nearest healthcare institution (emergencies departments in hospitals). They should disclose to medical staff whether they have traveled to the infected areas or contacted people with Marburg Virus Disease (MVD).
The Marburg Virus Disease (MVD) is highly infectious, with a fatality rate of around 60 percent to 80 percent.
Two ATC officers grounded after Air India and Nepal Airlines near mid-air collision
The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) has indefinitely suspended two air traffic controllers of Tribhuvan International Airport (KTM) who were involved in a recent incident that could have ended in a two-plane mid-air collision at a holding zone over Simara in Nepal.
According to flight history found on Flightradar24.com, on March 24, 2023, the Nepal Airlines Airbus A320-200 aircraft, registered 9N-AKW, was operating the scheduled passenger flight RA416 between Kuala Lumpur (KUL) in Malaysia and Kathmandu (KTM) in Nepal. Meanwhile, the Air India Airbus A319-100 plane registered VT-SCG, was arriving in Kathmandu (KTM) from Delhi (DEL) in India on scheduled flight AI213.
As it was reported by The Economic Times, the air traffic conflict incident happened when the Air India plane descended to an altitude of 3,700 feet from 19,000 feet. At the same time, it was being held up over Simara in the south-eastern region of Nepal.
Meanwhile, the Nepal Airlines jet was flying to the same destination at an altitude of 15,000 feet and had to retract the altitude after the Air India plane descended.
Fortunately, the warning systems of both aircraft prevented the tragedy.
In response to the incident, the CAAN decided to suspend two air traffic control officers who were on duty.
“Air Traffic Controllers (ATCs) of Tribhuvan International Airport involved in traffic conflict incident (between Air India and Nepal Airlines on 24th March 2023) have been removed from active control position until further notice,” the CAAN announced on March 26, 2023.
Along with the ATC officers, the CAAN also temporarily banned the flight crew of Air India aircraft who were involved in the event, The Print reported.
Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport operational disruptions were caused by a severe power outage that occurred on Sunday morning 1 January 2023. At around 9:50 a.m. local time, a blower for the uninterrupted power supply (UPS) began breaking down. At this time, the backup UPS also failed to come online, which resulted in the internet, radios, radars, and other communication channels shutting down. Because of this, the airport’s Air Traffic Management Center was forced to suspend operations. Just after noon, some power was able to be restored. However, due to a following power surge, several critical very small aperture terminals (VSATs) were broken.
As a result of this power outage and the Air Traffic Management Center suspending operations, 282 flights were impacted. Some were delayed, some canceled, and several inbound flights were forced to divert to other airports. For example, Qantas Flight #19 departed Sydney, Australia, bound for Manila at just after noon local time on Jan. 1. However, three hours into the flight, it was forced to turn around and fly back to Australia as a result of the air traffic control shut down. By that afternoon, all airlines were restricted from landing in Manila.
To make matters worse, as a result of these disruptions, no aircraft could even use the airspace above the Philippines. This meant several flights that were currently en route were forced to deviate from their flight plans and take an alternative course.
On New Year’s Day alone, 56,000 passengers were impacted by the power outage. By late afternoon, several flights were able to arrive and depart from Manila, but many have criticized the Philippines’ air traffic control technology and questioned how something like this could happen.
Jaime Bautista, the Secretary of Transportation for the Philippines, explained that he too was frustrated by the power outages and unhappy with the current technology the country’s air traffic control system uses, saying, “This was an air traffic management system issue. If you will compare with Singapore’s, for one, there is a big difference—they are at least 10 years ahead of us.”
Fixing the issues with the Philippines’ outdated air traffic control system would be a complex and costly task that could take years to fully implement. In fact, by the time the current system was fully in place, it was already outdated due to delays in the rollout of the technology. In the meantime, the transportation department has worked with the airlines to get passengers food and accommodations. Future investigations into this problem and the entire air traffic control system are likely to follow in the near future.
With traveler numbers returning to pre-pandemic levels, airports are navigating their way through an increasing surge of eager travelers. While the return to travel is a sigh of relief for many, travel over the holidays remains a stressful thought for some. To help travelers prepare for a busy holiday season, InsureMyTrip identified the worst performing airports in the U.S. by looking at data collected from 2019-2021 encompassing various negative factors.
#
Airport Name
City
Overall Average
1
Ted Stevens Anchorage International
Anchorage
27.2%
2
Newark Liberty International
Newark
23.6%
3
Palm Beach International
West Palm Beach
21.7%
4
Luis Munoz Marin International
San Juan
21.1%
5
Nashville International
Nashville
19.8%
6
El Paso International
El Paso
19.7%
7
Hollywood Burbank
Burbank
19.5%
8
San Francisco International
San Francisco
19.3%
9
Fort Laurderdale-Hollywood International
Fort Lauderdale
19.2%
10
Gerald R. Ford International
Grand Rapids
18.7%
The Worst Performing Airports Overall
Statistically, these are America’s worst airports for delays, cancellations, and diversions.
Ted Stevens Anchorage International in Alaska performed the worst overall, with a 27.15% chance of delay. System delays, with an 8.32% chance of causing delay, and late aircraft arrivals with a 7.06% chance of causing delay, appear to be this airport’s downfall.
Newark Liberty International in New Jersey grasped 2nd place, with an overall average of 23.55% chance of delay. It has a 12% chance of a system delay which is around 4% more likely to hold you up in comparison to Anchorage International, which has an average system delay of 8%.
Air carrier delays present a challenge for all airports, as this may cause a hold-up when preparing for boarding. Luis Munoz Marin International in Puerto Rico and El Paso International in Texas led this category, with 10.27% and 9.05% respectively, potentially signifying issues regarding staff.
The Best Performing Airports Overall
For travelers looking for the top performers, these airports can be considered the best as a result of less delayed, cancelled, or diverted flights.
Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International in Georgia has been crowned the best or most efficient airport with a 14.39% chance of experiencing any issues. They boast a tiny 0.04% possibility of being diverted or delayed due to security problems on average.
BWI Marshall in Maryland is awarded least likely to sustain weather difficulties, recording just a 0.12% chance of weather-related delays on average. Narrowly beating Chicago Midway International in Illinois and George Bush Intercontinental in Texas, which both had an average weather delay of 0.14%.
Alternatively, Hawaii’s Kahului International, at 2.8% and Daniel K Inouye International, at 3.4%, held 2 of the 3 lowest percentages for late aircraft arrivals, proving to be well organized despite high levels of tourist traffic.
Worst Air Carrier Delays
These airports average the most delays due to the operating airline preparations.
Across the three years presented it is clear to see a contrast in results, best explained by the COVID-19 pandemic. 2020 presents a decrease in delays, potentially due to the decrease in overall flights. However, 2021’s influx of holidays and business travel has pushed these airports to the brink.
Puerto Rico’s Luis Munoz Marin International endured the most air carrier delays across the three years, recently jumping from 6% in 2020 to a whopping 14.6% last year. This airport also sustained the largest decrease from 2019-2020, suggesting the pandemic severely halted Puerto Rico’s tourism industry.
Despite this, Tucson International in Arizona appeared to take pride in delivering consistently poor service, fluctuating the least of all the airports on this list throughout the three-year period with an overall average of 7.7%.
System Delays between 2019-2021
System delays are identified by being within the control of the National Airspace System (NAS), this includes operations, traffic volume, and traffic control. The airports listed show an overall percentage alongside another three-year comparison.
Newark Liberty International dominates this sector, with 12.2%. However, the real standout lies in 3rd place. In 2021 Nashville International held 19.3% (2019) but has since dropped to 2.96% (2021) despite all flights reopening. This indicates huge improvements as the number of flights put on was just 230 less in 2021 with 11,192, than in 2019 with 11,422.
Both New York airports; John F. Kennedy International, with 5.53%, and LaGuardia, with 6.65%, appear in this list, possibly due to the heavy amounts of traffic the city receives. Nevertheless, an area for improvement.
Late Aircraft Arrivals
This list identifies the airports with the most frequent number of previous flights arriving late, causing the present flight to depart late.
The top 10 list only differentiates 1.01%, with a 4.3% difference across all data gathered, the tightest of all the data sets.
As previously mentioned, Anchorage performed the worst in this category with 7.06% of delays caused by late aircraft arrivals. Next is Hollywood Burbank with 7.02% and El Paso International with 6.96%.
What do Hollywood Burbank (7.02%), Sacramento International (6.96%), Mineta San Jose International Airport (6.33%) and Metropolitan Oakland International (6.27%) all have in common? They are all in California, with 4 out of the 10 worst performing airports, California, is the worst state for aircraft arriving late.
Overall
Ted Steven’s Anchorage International was named the worst performing airport overall. System delays and late aircraft arrivals were identified as the airport’s weakest aspects.
Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International was crowned the best performing, scoring as low as 0.04% in diversions and security delays.
Whilst acknowledging the pandemics’ influence the data still presented valuable insights, as already this year we’ve seen major issues with airports struggling to return to pre-pandemic levels of travelers.
The first is how the contextual impacts on tourism have potentially led to difficulties surrounding delays. Specifically, Puerto Rico’s Luis Munoz Marin International is enduring a large increase in air carrier delays. Though it can be noted Tucson International remained consistently poor across the three-year period.
Nashville International in Tennessee seized the spotlight regarding system delays, having decreased by 16.3% throughout 2019-2021. Signifying either major improvements or a decrease in tourism.
Lastly, the late aircraft arrival list presents a minimal differentiation across 1st to 10th place, with airports within California standing out with some of the highest delays.
Methodology
InsureMyTrip gathered data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics over November and December for 2019, 2020 and 2021. An overall percentage was then gathered, taking the overall percentage from each year and dividing it by the number of years.
An average was also created from the three biggest reasons for flights to be delayed or canceled.
Korean Air says jet overran runway in Philippines, no injuries reported
A Korean Air Lines Co Ltd (003490.KS) jet with 173 people on board overshot the runway at Cebu International Airport in the Philippines late on Sunday, the airline said, adding that there were no injuries and all passengers had evacuated safely.
The Airbus SE (AIR.PA) A330 widebody flying from Seoul to Cebu had tried twice to land in poor weather before it overran the runway on the third attempt at 23:07 (1507 GMT), Korean Air said in a statement on Monday.
“Passengers have been escorted to three local hotels and an alternative flight is being arranged,” the airline said of flight KE361. “We are currently identifying the cause of the incident.”
Video from the scene verified by Reuters showed widespread damage to the plane. The nose landing gear appeared to have collapsed.
Korean Air President Keehong Woo issued an apology on the airline’s website, saying a thorough investigation would be carried out by Philippine and South Korean authorities to determine the cause.
Response crews gather around a Korean Air Airbus A330 widebody flying from Seoul to Cebu, which tried to land twice in poor weather before it overran the runway on the third attempt on Sunday, in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu, Philippines October 24, 2022 in this picture obtained from social media. Randyl Dungog/via REUTERS
“We remain committed to standing behind our promise of safe operations and will do our very best to institute measures to prevent its recurrence,” Woo said.
The A330-300 jet involved in the accident was delivered new to Korean Air in 1998, according to flight tracking website FlightRadar24, which said that other flights to Cebu had diverted to other airports or returned to their origin.
The Cebu airport said on its Facebook page that it had temporarily closed the runway to allow for the removal of the plane, meaning all domestic and international flights were cancelled until further notice.
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Korean Air has not had a fatal passenger crash since 1997, according to Aviation Safety Network, a website that compiles aviation accidents.
The airline had a poor safety record at that time but sought outside help from Boeing Co (BA.N) and Delta Air Lines Inc (DAL.N) to improve its standards.
IHG hack: ‘Vindictive’ couple deleted hotel chain data for fun
IMAGE SOURCE, GETTY IMAGES
Hackers have told the BBC they carried out a destructive cyber-attack against Holiday Inn owner Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG) “for fun”.
Describing themselves as a couple from Vietnam, they say they first tried a ransomware attack, then deleted large amounts of data when they were foiled.
They accessed the FTSE 100 firm’s databases thanks to an easily found and weak password, Qwerty1234.
An expert says the case highlights the vindictive side of criminal hackers.
UK-based IHG operates 6,000 hotels around the world, including the Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza and Regent brands.
On Monday last week, customers reported widespread problems with booking and check-in.
For 24 hours IHG responded to complaints on social media by saying that the company was “undergoing system maintenance”.
Then on the Tuesday afternoon it told investors that it had been hacked.
“Booking channels and other applications have been significantly disrupted since yesterday,” it said in an official notice lodged with the London Stock Exchange.
The hackers, calling themselves TeaPea, contacted the BBC on the encrypted messaging app, Telegram, providing screenshots as evidence that they had carried out the hack.
The images, which IHG has confirmed are genuine, show they gained access to the company’s internal Outlook emails, Microsoft Teams chats and server directories.
“Our attack was originally planned to be a ransomware but the company’s IT team kept isolating servers before we had a chance to deploy it, so we thought to have some funny [sic]. We did a wiper attack instead,” one of the hackers said.
A wiper attack is a form of cyber-attack that irreversibly destroys data, documents and files.
The average wage in Vietnam is about $300 (£270) per month
Cyber-security specialist Rik Ferguson, vice-president of security at Forescout, said the incident was a cautionary tale as, even though the company’s IT team initially found a way to fend them off, the hackers were still able to find a way to inflict damage.
“The hackers’ change of tactic seems born out of vindictive frustration,” he said. “They couldn’t make money so they lashed out, and that absolutely betrays the fact that we are not talking about ‘professional’ cybercriminals here.”
IHG says customer-facing systems are returning to normal but that services may remain intermittent.
The hackers are showing no remorse about the disruption they have caused the company and its customers.
“We don’t feel guilty, really. We prefer to have a legal job here in Vietnam but the wage is average $300 per month. I’m sure our hack won’t hurt the company a lot.”
The hackers say no customer data was stolen but they do have some corporate data, including email records.
TeaPea say they gained access to IHG’s internal IT network by tricking an employee into downloading a malicious piece of software through a booby-trapped email attachment.
They also had to bypass an additional security prompt message sent to the worker’s devices as part of a two-factor authentication system.
IMAGE SOURCE, GETTY IMAGES
Qwerty1234 is a popular password because it comprises the first five letters and the first four numbers of an English keyboard
The criminals then say they accessed the most sensitive parts of IHG’s computer system after finding login details for the company’s internal password vault.
“The username and password to the vault was available to all employees, so 200,000 staff could see. And the password was extremely weak,” they told the BBC.
Surprisingly, the password was Qwerty1234, which regularly appears on lists of most commonly used passwords worldwide.
“Sensitive data should only be available to employees who need access to that data to do their job, and they should have the minimum level of access [needed] to use that data,” said Mr Ferguson, after seeing the screenshots.
“Even a highly complex password is just as insecure as a simple one if it is left exposed.”
An IHG spokeswoman disputed that the password vault details were not secure, saying that the attacker had to evade “multiple layers of security”, but would not give details about the extra security.
“IHG employs a defence-in-depth strategy to information security that leverages many modern security solutions,” she added.
A suspected gang of thieves who allegedly stole items worth €300,000 (£260,000) from first-class passengers on French trains has been captured.
It is thought they stole luggage from passengers after sitting beside them on high-speed trains crossing the country.
One man, aged 57, is said to have posed as a woman, wearing a wig.
He and two other men, 47 and 40, have confessed to carrying out the thefts over five to six years, French media say.
They are believed to have stored stolen goods in a flat in the southern city of Marseille.
The alleged modus operandi was to steal items during station stops after the unsuspecting owners got off the train to stretch their legs or have a smoke.
Police were first alerted in April when a passenger reported the theft of a briefcase containing jewellery worth €50,000, local media say.
Four months later, police discovered a hoard of stolen goods in the Marseille flat.
Items included €130,000 in cash, a €70,000 watch, designer handbags, shoes, cameras and jewellery.
Local police believe more than 100 people had items stolen and are trying to track down passengers who were targeted on trains travelling between Paris, Geneva and Nice.
The men face up to seven years in prison if convicted of robbery.
