A passenger boarding China Southern Airlines accused the carrier of delaying treatment for his acute illness, generating waves of criticism online over one of the largest airlines and airports in China.

The passenger, describing himself as a journalist at a provincial-level media outlet, posted the accusation article on China's version of twitter, Sina Weibo, on Sunday. The post has been read more than 5 million times and forwarded more than 10,000 times.

According to the passenger, he took flight CZ6101 on the morning of Nov. 9 from northeastern China's Shenyang City to Beijing, the capital city. After feeling an acute ache in his belly five minutes into the journey, he reported his illness to the flight attendants who later called for an ambulance at the destination airport.

The airplane landed at 9:50 but it took around 50 minutes for the cabin door to be opened, the journalist said in the post.

After being examined by two doctors, the journalist found himself unable to get off the plane due to his illness. "The emergency staff did not bring any stretcher nor was anyone willing to help me get off," the journalist said, adding that the doctors and the flight attendants quarreled among themselves who should be held responsible as one doctor cited the icy floor that may trip the passenger.

The passenger later managed to get off the plane himself and climb onto the ambulance without any assistance offered by the staff nearby, he said. He was eventually taken care of at the hospital.

Aviation insiders attributed the delayed treatment to poor coordination between the airline and the airport. China Southern Airlines issued a statement today on its official Sina Weibo account, claiming that "the braking system of the plane malfunctioned and the cabin door was unable to open until the plane was towed to the parking spot." It offered an apology to the passenger. The Beijing Capital International Airport has not yet responded to media inquiries.

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)