Chinese Pilot Banned From Flying For Allowing Woman To Visit Cockpit During Flight

A picture taken 10 months ago showing a female Chinese student in the cockpit of an airplane during a commercial flight has resulted in the permanent grounding of the pilot. Allowing the young woman to enter the cockpit and sit in the pilot’s seat is considered a violation of aviation safety rules.

The picture that went viral on social media on Sunday shows the student, identified as Chen Yuying, posing with a tea set and making a “V” sign with her left hand. She added a caption to the online photo that read: “I am super thankful to the pilot! I am so thrilled!”

Chen is a third-year student at Guilin Tourism University and is planning to enter the aviation field as a flight attendant after graduation. Some media reports said she was in a relationship with the pilot when the picture was taken. The actions of the two have affected the entire flight crew who were also suspended.

The airline, Air Guilin, issued a statement Monday confirming that the unnamed pilot had violated air safety rules. The statement said, “Air Guilin has decided to ban the pilot from flying for life,” but did not say whether the pilot would continue working for the airline in another capacity.

The statement added, “The other crew members have been suspended from flying indefinitely pending further investigations. Air Guilin always attaches great importance to passengers’ safety, and we have ‘zero tolerance’ for any improper and unprofessional conduct that may jeopardize aviation safety.”

The incident would have likely gone unnoticed before the days of social media, but because of the wide circulation of the photo on Weibo (China’s version of Facebook or Twitter), it was seen by at least one person working in the air flight industry which sparked an online commotion among aviation specialists.

Laws and regulations are usually preceded by events that bring to light and magnify the need for them. This is especially true for aircraft flying at high altitudes with little room for pilot error. The regulation against letting unauthorized people into the cockpit, aside from terrorist concerns, may have been written due to a 1994 crash in Russia that killed 75 people. The pilot had allowed his children, aged 12 and 16, into the cockpit. Experts think the cause of the crash was the children accidentally interfering with the controls.

Chen Yuying herself will not escape unscathed from the incident. Zhang Qihuai, deputy head of the Chinese Aviation Law Association, told Global Times that she should be facing a fine of 2,000 yuan (US$284) and up to five days in detention.