Chinese Passenger Detained for 5 Days After Vaping on Plane
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We get it, you vape.
It’s not exactly breaking news that it’s against the law to vape on an airplane. However, on Sept. 29, a Chinese passenger on board a domestic flight from Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport (HGH) to Changchun Longjia International Airport (CGQ) was caught red-handed trying to sneak a few puffs from their e-cig in the airplane’s bathroom. He was promptly removed from the aircraft, arrested and held in detention for five days following the incident.
Last month, Air China faced another vape-related controversy when two pilots operating Flight 737 caused the aircraft to plunge 25,000 feet when they attempted to vape in the cockpit. By shutting off the air conditioning, they thought that they would prevent smoke from spreading to the rest of the plane — however, that didn’t pan out when the cabin depressurized and overhead oxygen masks were deployed. Luckily, no one was injured, but both of the pilots were fired and stripped of their licenses.
Since 2006, Chinese flight regulations have banned passengers from using e-cigarettes on board. However, despite this, China as a nation has not set any regulations on the booming vape industry. As of now, according to the World Health Organization’s Collaborating Centre for Tobacco and Economics at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, there are about 7 million electronic smokers currently in China.
In the US, a passenger found vaping on board a plane could face fines up to $4,000 and run the risk of incarceration as well. Although e-cigarettes and vapes remove the tobacco element from the smoking equation, they are still banned from use on all airlines and by law as the production of the vapor still negatively affects surrounding passengers and crew members.
Featured image by Eva Hambach/AFP via Getty Images
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