The news editor should get a physics book. Trying to open the door is hardly dangerous.
The woman committed several crimes and was dangerous, not just to the poor flight attendant but via that transitively to everyone else. But attacking the door...give me a break.
As for the fighter jets: how could they possibly help the situation? Shoot her?
> As for the fighter jets: how could they possibly help the situation? Shoot her?
No. They were sent to try and get a visual account of what the real danger was. If it was determined that this was a terrorist act, they would down the plane.
> The aircraft was forced to return to the UK when Haines tried to open the door, forcing the RAF to scramble two Eurofighter Typhoon jets to intercept it.
Agreed, just the Typhoon's cost way more: UK accounts 70k pounds per flight hour (that includes depreciation, capital costs and all that, pure per-hour cost is probably closer to 20k)
At what altitude? At low altitude, it is theoretically possible (although some passenger aircrafts have a lock).
But even then it would still require significant strength, as there would likely be some air differential due to the aircraft's speed/air pressure against the door.
At higher altitudes it is essentially impossible for a human. You'd have to blow apart the door or equivalent.
The biggest thing is the pressure differential. And that varies based on speed/altitude/etc. At normal cruise in a jet aircraft, it just isn't happening.
It isn't intuitive how aircraft doors work, but the door doesn't open "out" in the typical sense. It actually sits against the aircraft's outer hull, the larger the differential the higher pressure exist between the door and the skin of the aircraft.
When the door is opened, it actually slides in then out sideways rather than swings open.
nope - atleast not on your typical commercial passenger aircraft after certain height is achieved. The air pressure difference between inside of aircraft and outside makes it impossible.
I don't see how mixing alcohol and medication excuses her from consequences. Two years seems reasonable to me.