'Do not panic': Cabin crew slides note under door after man gets stuck in plane's toilet

A man's bathroom break on a flight turned into a nightmare when the plane's toilet door suddenly malfunctioned. 

The incident occurred on Tuesday (Jan 16), onboard a SpiceJet flight from Mumbai to Bengaluru, reported The Hindustan Times. 

SpiceJet cabin crew realised the passenger was stuck upon hearing the "man's distress calls", the BBC reported.

Multiple efforts by the cabin crew and other passengers to unlock the lavatory door proved futile. 

The passenger was said to have been stuck in the toilet for almost the entire duration of the 105-minute flight.

Before the plane was due to land, the cabin crew slipped a note to reassure the passenger that help was on the way. 

A picture of the crew's note shared on X by user Shiv Aroor, has garnered 1.1 million views at the time of writing. 

It is not known if the user was a passenger on the same flight.

Passenger on SpiceJet Mum-Blr flight gets stuck in toilet. Door won’t open, lock jammed. Crew slips him this note between the cracks on the folding door. ✈️🚽 pic.twitter.com/0jZ98p8m5A

— Shiv Aroor (@ShivAroor) January 17, 2024

"Sir, we tried our best to open the door, however, we could not open it. Do not panic, we are landing in a few mins, so please close the commode lid and sit on it and secure yourself.

"As soon as the main door is open, an engineer will come. Do not panic," the handwritten note read.

The trapped passenger was eventually rescued by ground engineers who managed to open the malfunctioning door after the plane landed. 

"The passenger was immediately attended to by medical professionals to assess his well-being," a spokesperson from SpiceJet airline said in a statement. 

"SpiceJet regrets and apologises for the inconvenience caused to the passenger," the spokesperson added.

The Indian carrier added that it has since offered a full refund to the passenger. 

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ashwini.balan@asiaone.com