Officials Asking Passengers To Stop Throwing Coins At Planes

A Chinese airline issued a warning against "uncivilized behaviors" involving passengers "throwing coins at the plane" who "pose a threat to aviation safety and will result in different levels of punishment" following an incident that led to a delay of more than four hours, according to Chinese state media via CNN.

China Southern Airlines flight CZ8805 took off at 2:16 p.m. local time, four hours and 16 minutes after its originally scheduled 10:00 a.m. departure, according to the flight-tracking websites Flightradar24 and Flight Aware. A video shared by multiple Chinese state media outlets showed a passenger suspected of throwing coins being questioned by a flight attendant who asks how many were thrown into the engine.

The unidentified passenger is heard admitting "three to five" coins were thrown in the video. The passenger was reportedly detained by airport police, according to Chinese state media, who cited Chinese Southern Airlines officials claim that the coins were found during security checks, though not giving details on how many were located.

“The aircraft maintenance staff conducted a comprehensive safety inspection and determined that there were no safety issues before takeoff,” the airline’s customer service told Chinese state media via CNN.

China Southern Airlines warned passengers of "uncivilized behaviors" on its flights and noted that "throwing coins at the plane" posed "a threat to aviation safety and will result in different levels of punishment," though not referencing the incident directly. Similar incidents in China are reported to have stemmed from passengers believing that throwing coins at planes brought "good luck" in recent years.