A daring Southwest Airlines pilot was pictured climbing through the cockpit window to unlock the plane door after it was accidentally slammed shut by a previous passenger.
The unidentified pilot is seen in the photo, captured by passenger Max Rexroad and shared on social media, crawling through the small, square window from atop a flight of mobile boarding stairs.
The incident happened Wednesday at San Diego International Airport and involved a Southwest Airlines flight bound for Sacramento.
“No joke… yesterday last passenger got off plane with no one else on board, he shut the door. Door locked. Pilot having to crawl through cockpit window to open door so we can board,” Rexroad wrote alongside the photo.
Passengers were warned by the gate staff that their flight would be delayed and that someone would have to unlock the plane from the inside of the cockpit, the passenger told CBS Sacramento.
A Southwest Airlines pilot had to wing it when the plane door had been accidentally locked before boarding. CBS News/Twitter/@MattRexroad
Passengers were waiting to board a flight from San Diego to Sacramento Wednesday when a Southwest agent announced that the plane door had been locked by a passenger from the previous flight. CBS News/Twitter/@MattRexroadA Southwest representative responded to Rexroad’s tweet, quipping: “Well that is definitely something you don’t see every day.”
Rexroad, who is a frequent flier, had to agree, telling CBS that it was a first for him.
“It’s certainly something you don’t see every day,” Rexroad said. “I’ve never seen anything like that.”
Southwest Airlines confirmed the incident in a statement to The Post.
“During the boarding process, a Customer opened the forward lavatory door and inadvertently pushed the Flight Deck door closed (which locked) while the Pilots scheduled to operate the flight were preparing to board the aircraft,” the statement reads.
“One of our Pilots unlocked the door from a Flight Deck window, and the flight departed as scheduled.”
The pilot then mounted a ladder and made his way into the cockpit to unlatch the door. CBS News/Twitter/@MattRexroad
Rexroad applauded the pilot for taking matters into his own hands, resulting in only a very short delay. CBS NEWSUltimately, the flight’s takeoff was delayed by only eight minutes.
“From my point of view, credit [goes] to the pilot and the team for being able to make that happen,” Rexroad said.
