Midair scare as flyer enters cockpit code

VARANASI/NEW DELHI: A hijack scare gripped an Air India Express flight from Bengaluru to Varanasi Monday after a man tried to unlock the cockpit door mid-air by entering random digits on its keypad, triggering a security buzzer inside the flight deck.

Cabin crew confronted the passenger, identified as Mani R, who claimed he was a first-time flyer looking for the lavatory. He returned to his seat, but the move prompted the captain of Flight IX-1086, a Boeing 737, to alert Varanasi ATC.

Despite his explanation, the alarm was taken seriously as Mani had allegedly punched the correct cockpit code, police sources said. A passenger posted on X: "An @AirIndiaX passenger tried to open the cockpit door... He even punched the right passcode, but the captain didn't open the door, fearing a hijack. The passenger was flying with eight others." The crew's refusal to open the door prevented further escalation. The airline has categorised the act as "level-three unruly behaviour", the highest on the scale, covering interference with aircraft systems and punishable with a "no-fly listing" of at least two years and possibly a lifetime ban.

"We are aware of an occurrence on one of our flights to Varanasi, where a passenger approached the cockpit entry area while looking for the lavatory," an Air India Express spokesperson said. "We reaffirm that robust safety and security protocol are in place and were not compromised."

Varanasi ACP Pindra Prateek Kumar said CISF moved in as soon as the flight crew's message was relayed to the airlines and airport officials. The jet landed in Varanasi at 10.18am. CISF detained Mani and eight others in his group, all from Bengaluru. "Following initial interrogation, they were handed over to Phulpur police," Kumar said.

Security agencies, including IB and anti-terrorism squad questioned the group until late evening. The youths told investigators they had come to Varanasi to visit temples and that Mani mistook the cockpit keypad for restroom-entry mechanism.

At Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport, fellow travellers described relief after a tense flight. "When he tried to open the cockpit door, other passengers were left frightened and confused," one flyer said.

Checks revealed no suspicious items. ADCP Vaibhav Bangar said: "Further background verification and investigation are underway."

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