Man who tried to open plane door at 30,000ft thinking it was the toilet banned by airline

A hapless passenger has been banned from flying with a major airline for five years after he mistook a jet’s outside door for the toilet. James Gray said airline staff accused him of trying to open the door of the plane he was on while travelling at 30,000ft. However, he claims he only touched the handle after confusing it for the door to the toilet.



James, from Alloa, Scotland, was marched off the KLM flight from Edinburgh to Amsterdam the moment it touched down at Schiphol Airport. He was then whisked away to a nearby detention centre where he spent the night before he was fined £434 (600 euros). But when he went to fly home he said KLM staff refused to let him board and said he was banned from flying with them for five years. He only made it back after a pal paid for him to travel with a rival airline.

James said: “The crew told me to stay in my seat and I was to be arrested when the plane landed. I tried to explain it was a simple mistake. It was a misunderstanding. The police came and arrested me. They weren’t too friendly.” James claims he spoke to a translator by phone as he was being interviewed by Dutch police officers. He also had to borrow money after the fine wiped out his holiday funds. He said: “I was charged and fined 600 euros.



"I only had 750 euros with me so I had to borrow money for the rest of the stay over there.” James said he doesn’t know if he will face any further action over the incident but is adamant he wouldn’t dream of opening a plane door on purpose. “I realise the danger of that sort of thing,” he added. A spokeswoman for Schiphol Airport and a spokesperson for the Royal Dutch Border Police both refused to comment. KLM said a passenger had been handed over to authorities due to “his misbehaviour” on-board.