An 80-year-old Chinese grandma tossed a coin straight into the turbine of a jet aircraft on Tuesday, causing a five-hour flight delay on a China Southern Airlines flight out of Shanghai.
The lady, surnamed Qiu, threw coins at the airplane for luck, Shanghai police said. She has no criminal history.
Police officers found eight coins on the ground near the airplane and found one inside the Airbus 320 engine. A coin inside a jet engine could cause catastrophic damage.
The flight was bound for Guangzhou with 150 passengers onboard and was scheduled to depart at 12:40 p.m. All of the passengers had to be cleared from the airplane after the coins were discovered. Aircraft maintenance staff then conducted a thorough inspection of the engine.
More than five hours later, the plane finally took off at 6:16 p.m.
According to local media, the value of the coins is 1.7 yuan, about 25 cents.
Police said they will investigate the matter further.
The went viral in China, which has a bustling air travel market and some of the most delayed airports in the world.
