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Man tried to open plane door at 40,000 ft

LIFE STYLE EXTRA (UK) - A passenger sparked panic when he tried to open the door of a British Airways plane at 40,000 feet over the Atlantic and again while it was coming in to land, a court heard today.

On his first attempt, Mahamet Diakite, 24, "succeeded to the point that it was only the pressurisation of the cabin and wind speed which prevented the aircraft door opening", prosecutor John Hulme said. "He became involved in a struggle with another passenger."

And when the Frenchman tried again on the Chicago to London Boeing 777 flight, "the door was opened to the extent that wind was noticeably passing through the door seal," he said.

Mr Hulme told the jury at Isleworth Crown Court: "The facts of the case are any nervous passenger's nightmare."

He said Diakite boarded the seven-hour flight in Chicago and quickly "came to the attention of cabin crew because of his abnormal behaviour. He was playing with his cigarette lighter, flicking it alight and a burning smell was detected."

After his two attempts to open the doors, he was arrested on landing at Heathrow. Mr Hulme added: "His actions created a risk to the safety of the aircraft, its crew and passengers." (snip)
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