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Expert questions airport security over smoking passenger
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Halim Perdanakusuma International Airport in East Jakarta. A recent case in which a passenger was removed from a Citilink flight at the airport on Jan. 25 for smoking has exposed the airport's security standards. (kompas.com/Robertus Belarminus)
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recent case in which a passenger was removed from a Citilink flight for smoking has raised questions about Halim Perdanakusuma Airport's security standards, as cigarette lighters are listed among hazardous items banned from aircraft, an expert has said.
"Lighters contain a chemical material that is categorized as a dangerous commodity. It should have been detected through an x-ray security check," Arista Indonesia Aviation Center (AIAC) CEO Arista Atmadjati said on Monday.
The passenger, identified as Iwan Limau, was removed from the Denpasar-bound flight on Sunday for smoking while boarding the aircraft as it was refueling at the airport in East Jakarta, the budget carrier said in a statement.
He reportedly started smoking after passing through a boarding gate and went on smoking while climbing the aircraft passenger steps in proximity to the engine as the aircraft was refueling.
Aviation security personnel took immediate action and ordered the passenger, who had already sat in his assigned seat, to leave the plane, which was about to disembark.
"It's fatal negligence. Aviation security personnel as well as flight attendants and ground-handling personnel should have been able to prevent it," Arista said.
Citilink vice president of corporate communication Benny Siga Butarbutar said the passenger's behavior was a threat to the safety and security of the flight.
“In the airline industry, we need to ensure that no safety rule is violated, ensuring that flight operations can run safely, smoothly and comfortably,” he said in the statement.
