A plane from Bangkok to Amsterdam had to make an emergency landing in Warsaw after a passenger tried to open the door during the flight.

Three fellow passengers helped the cabin crew overpower the man before he was handcuffed and led away by police. The KLM plane was grounded in the Polish capital because of the damage to the door in the incident on Saturday night.

Coen Schrijver, one of the trio who came to the crew’s aid, told AT5 that the man had been seated at the back of the aircraft because he had acting strangely during the flight.

‘At one point there was a lot of shouting,’ he said. ‘The cabin crew called out: “Help, help, come and help.” He was trying to do all kinds of things to the door.

‘I leapt out of my seat to overpower the man. Two other passengers did the same. The three of us overpowered him. The crew quickly came across with tie wraps and handcuffs. There was a doctor on board who could give him something to calm him down.’

Transfers

Schrijver said there was no panic on board during the incident and the crew told the passengers the plane was making an unscheduled stop because of strong headwinds.

The passengers spent Saturday night in hotels in Warsaw before KLM offered them transfers to Amsterdam or other cities the following day.

It is not possible to open an aircraft door in mid-flight because the difference in pressure inside and outside the plane is too great.