A Jetstar flight from Bali to Australia was forced to return to its departure airport on Monday, 31 March 2025, after a female passenger attempted to open an emergency door mid-flight. The incident triggered a cabin alarm and prompted the pilot to turn the aircraft around, with many passengers later describing the experience as a “nightmare flight”.c
Flight JQ-34, from Denpasar Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali to Melbourne, Australia, had been airborne for an hour, according to data from FlightAware, when a passenger attempted to open the emergency door. The alarm alerted cabin crew to the incident, and the woman was restrained by an off-duty police officer who was standing nearby at the time.
“Just got off our Jetstar flight from Bali to home. Two hours in, a lady tried opening the emergency door because she wanted to get off mid-air. Absolutely nightmare. Had to turn around and land back in Bali for her to get arrested. 260 angry and scared passengers. Police escorted her off plane,” fellow passenger Jacqueline Felgate wrote on Instagram.
In the video she posted online, the pilot can be heard explaining the situation to passengers. He stated that the safest course of action was to make a U-turn and return to Bali.
Why no official statement has been released about the reason why the passenger tried to open the cabin door, Australian reality TV star Brooke Jowett – who was present during the incident – claims the argument started when the woman asked to sit in a different row in order to have a reclining chair. When refused, she tried to open the emergency door.
@ws.aviation0 A Jetstar flight heading to Melbourne from Bali overnight was forced to turn around after a “nightmare” situation unfolded where a passenger tried to open the aircraft door. #jetstar #jetstaraustralia #flight #bali to #melbourne #return #divert #passenger #try #to #open#emergency #door #fyp #reels #sydney #australia #aviation #avgeek #news #aviationnews #viral #video #planespotting #planespotting✈️ #planespotters #planespotterpro @Plane Finder @Jetstar Australia ♬ Hoist The Colours – Bass Singers Version – The Wellermen & Bobby Bass & Eric Hollaway
“We had an aircraft return to Denpasar last night after a disruptive passenger attempted to open one of the aircraft doors and was abusive to our crew. The safety and welfare of our customers and crew is our top priority and we thank them for the way they responded to the situation. This sort of unacceptable behaviour will never be tolerated on our flights,” JetStar said in a statement following the incident.
The low-cost airline added all passengers on board were provided with an alternative flight to Melbourne.
