Man tries to open airliner door in flight

[MillCreek]

http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/crime/florida-man-charged-with-interfering-with-crew-on-seattle-to-beijing-flight/

I have always wondered: can you really open an airliner door in flight?  Don't they have safety interlocks and such?  I remember reading that this had been done to 727 rear flight stairs after DB Cooper.

[Boomhauer]

Everything I've read says it's impossible due to the air pressure difference


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[230RN]

Everything I've read says it's impossible due to the air pressure difference


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^

The air pressure is less on the outside of the plane.

Although poorly reported, this would imply that the locks are mechanically pressure-sensitive, though, and would have opened at a low altitude:

One flight attendant later reported that the door could have opened if it was fully disarmed at the altitude they were flying over the northwest end of Vancouver Island, B.C.

Are you thinking of trying to open a car door underwater, mayhaps?  I understand that's virtually impossible deeper than about 9 feet unless you open a window or something to let water in to equalize the pressure.

Terry, 230RN

[Fly320s]

The latching lugs on the doors are on the inside of the airplane frame.  The interior cabin pressure is trying to push the door out, which means the pressure is also pushing the lugs against the frame.  Under the full pressurization, there is 8 PSId pushing on the doors, and everything else.  So, 8 PSI on a door with roughly 2,000 square inches of area means no one can open a door in flight.

At lower pressurization, maybe it could happen.

[Fly320s]

The passenger was using a dependent pass, meaning his is the son of an employee.  That guy will never fly on Delta again and his parent might lose pass benefits too.

[Fly320s]

More door info: the window exits, a.k.a. over wing emergency exits, are plug-type doors.  Those doors have to be pulled into the cabin to open them, so not even The Hulk could open those. 

[TommyGunn]

More door info: the window exits, a.k.a. over wing emergency exits, are plug-type doors.  Those doors have to be pulled into the cabin to open them, so not even The Hulk could open those.  

Awww, I bet he could!    I recall an episode of "THE SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN" in which he kicked an airplane door and the whole thing broke off and flew off the jet, causing gnarly depressurization.  Anything ol' Six Mil.  can  do the Hulk can do!

This has been your physics lesson for the day!

[RoadKingLarry]

More door info: the window exits, a.k.a. over wing emergency exits, are plug-type doors.  Those doors have to be pulled into the cabin to open them, so not even The Hulk could open those. 

Puny god airplane door

[Scout26]

Puny Civilian Aircraft.

The Chair Force opens the passenger doors* all time on their aircraft.  In fact, the accommodations suck so bad that most of the passengers get off mid-flight.


*- They even have a back door to throw the passengers luggage and other carry-on items out the back.  The Chair Force really sucks when it comes to "Customer Friendly Service".

[MechAg94]

But I know from watching movies that a bullet penetrating a window or the air frame will cause an entire section of the plane to fall off and several people to be sucked out.   

[KD5NRH]

But I know from watching movies that a bullet penetrating a window or the air frame will cause an entire section of the plane to fall off and several people to be sucked out.

I've often wanted people who believe that to explain why they think anti-aircraft guns tend to be large calibers with exploding projectiles, rather than just handgun bullets loaded for long range.  None have given a reason yet.

[AJ Dual]

More door info: the window exits, a.k.a. over wing emergency exits, are plug-type doors.  Those doors have to be pulled into the cabin to open them, so not even The Hulk could open those. 

My guess would be that the Hulk's feet would pierce the fuselage before the door gave way.

[T.O.M.]

A thought (the lawyer in me.  Sorry.)  An attempt to open the door puts me and my loved ones in imminent risk of serious physical harm or death, as it could cause catastrophic decompression, uncontrolled altitude loss, and plane crash.  If I kill the guy trying to open the door, is that justified self-defense/defense of others?

[TechMan]

Puny Civilian Aircraft.

The Chair Force opens the passenger doors* all time on their aircraft.  In fact, the accommodations suck so bad that most of the passengers get off mid-flight.


*- They even have a back door to throw the passengers luggage and other carry-on items out the back.  The Chair Force really sucks when it comes to "Customer Friendly Service".

United strives to meet the Chair Force's "Customer Friendly Service."

[Perd Hapley]

A thought (the lawyer in me.  Sorry.)  An attempt to open the door puts me and my loved ones in imminent risk of serious physical harm or death, as it could cause catastrophic decompression, uncontrolled altitude loss, and plane crash.  If I kill the guy trying to open the door, is that justified self-defense/defense of others?

Only if you're above a state that has a Stand Your Air law.

[T.O.M.]

Only if you're above a state that has a Stand Your Air law.

Nice.  Well played.

[Angel Eyes]

United strives to meet the Chair Force's "Customer Friendly Service."

... and United gets its customers to pay for the service.

[Fly320s]

A thought (the lawyer in me.  Sorry.)  An attempt to open the door puts me and my loved ones in imminent risk of serious physical harm or death, as it could cause catastrophic decompression, uncontrolled altitude loss, and plane crash.  If I kill the guy trying to open the door, is that justified self-defense/defense of others?

Yes it is, and there is case history for it.  Remember the Southwest flight where three or four of the passengers literally sat on a guy who was trying a similar stupid stunt?  That guy died.  No charges were filed against the passengers.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southwest_Airlines_Flight_1763

[RevDisk]

A thought (the lawyer in me.  Sorry.)  An attempt to open the door puts me and my loved ones in imminent risk of serious physical harm or death, as it could cause catastrophic decompression, uncontrolled altitude loss, and plane crash.  If I kill the guy trying to open the door, is that justified self-defense/defense of others?

If you could actually do so at altitude, yes. Since you cannot, no. It makes plenty of money for lawyers (and judges ) when a defendant thinks their life is in danger when it actually is not. Answer of course is "yes", but arrived at in a potentially expensive manner. Fly320s points out this happened, thankfully without charges being filed.

The doors are designed by engineers. You're not opening them in flight barring explosives or the aircraft experiencing rapid unscheduled disassembly.

[Hawkmoon]

A thought (the lawyer in me.  Sorry.)  An attempt to open the door puts me and my loved ones in imminent risk of serious physical harm or death, as it could cause catastrophic decompression, uncontrolled altitude loss, and plane crash.  If I kill the guy trying to open the door, is that justified self-defense/defense of others?

You're the lawyer and former prosecutor, what do you think?

It works for me ...

[Hawkmoon]

The doors are designed by engineers. You're not opening them in flight barring explosives or the aircraft experiencing rapid unscheduled disassembly.

Those outward-opening cargo doors that brought down a couple of jumbo jets and killed two or three hundred people were designed by those same engineers of whom you speak ...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkish_Airlines_Flight_981

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Airlines_Flight_811

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonnell_Douglas_DC-10#Cargo_door_problem