A passenger on a Batik Air flight from Kuala Lumpur to Kochi allegedly smashed part of an emergency exit, tried to force the door open in flight, and then threatened those who intervened. His explanation to police afterward was almost as disturbing as the incident itself: he apparently said he simply “felt like doing so.”
Passenger Tries To Open Emergency Exit On Batik Air 737 In Flight
Here’s another frightening example of why an unruly passenger can become a very serious problem very quickly.
On August 5, 2026, Batik Air Malaysia flight OD231 was traveling from Kuala Lumpur (KUL) to Kochi (COK), India, aboard a Boeing 737-800.
Most passengers were reportedly asleep on the nighttime flight when a disturbance broke out near an emergency exit.
Matty from Our Wandering Lives, who was onboard, captured the aftermath and shared video of the chaotic scene.
Police identified the passenger as 36-year-old Jamsheer Athanikkal, who was seated in 12A near the exit. According to the police complaint, Athanikkal began behaving erratically and allegedly kicked and damaged the window panel on the emergency exit before trying to force the door open (you can see the damage in the embedded video above).
Passengers and cabin crew rushed to stop him. He allegedly pushed back against those trying to restrain him and threatened both passengers and crew before eventually being overpowered and secured with restraints.
The video shows several people gathered around the exit area as the passenger is subdued, along with visible damage around the door.
No, He Was Not Going To Open The Door At 30,000 Feet
Stories like this often produce ridiculous headlines about someone nearly opening an aircraft door at cruising altitude.
That’s not really how this works. On a pressurized Boeing 737, the pressure inside the cabin is far greater than the pressure outside at altitude. The door is designed so that this pressure differential effectively holds it in place, thus a passenger cannot simply pull a handle and open an intact emergency exit at 30,000 feet.
Of course, that does not make what happened harmless. Trying to destroy components around an emergency exit, damaging the door or window assembly, threatening passengers, and forcing the crew to physically restrain you is extremely serious.
(…and nobody onboard knew in the moment how far the passenger intends to go or what else he might do)
That is why the rather harsh response from the crew and nearby passengers was entirely appropriate.
His Explanation? He “Felt Like Doing So”
Hopefully Athanikkal is getting the treatment he needs, perhaps in a padded room.
The aircraft landed safely in Kochi, where airport personnel detained Athanikkal before handing him over to local police. According to Indian media reports, police asked him why he had tried to open the exit.
His reported answer?
“I felt like doing so at that moment.”
Okay…
He reportedly told investigators that he was returning home to see his newborn child. What a dad!
Police initially booked him for offenses including criminal intimidation, violating aviation safety directions, and endangering public safety. Authorities subsequently added an attempted murder charge, reasoning that his actions potentially endangered everyone onboard.
I certainly don’t want to speculate about what was going on in this man’s head…that’s for investigators and medical professionals to determine…but “I felt like doing so” is a chilling explanation for attempting to interfere with an emergency exit on a commercial aircraft.
The aircraft was inspected, the damaged components were repaired, and it was subsequently cleared to return to service.
CONCLUSION
A passenger aboard a Batik Air flight to India allegedly damaged an emergency exit window panel and attempted to force open the exit during a nighttime flight from Kuala Lumpur to Kochi.
Passengers and crew restrained him, the flight landed safely, and he was arrested upon arrival. His reported explanation that he simply “felt like doing so” makes this episode even stranger.
The good news is that the physics and design of a pressurized 737 made it virtually impossible for him to open the exit at cruising altitude. But when someone begins attacking an aircraft door in flight, I’m very glad there were passengers and crew willing to move quickly and stop him.
image: @batikair / Instagram
Batik? More like Batsh*t-crazy passenger.