San Francisco: A 17-year-old passenger swung open an emergency exit on Tuesday and jumped from an aeroplane onto the runway at San Francisco International Airport.

An airport official said that after Copa Airlines flight 208 from Panama City landed about 2.30pm local time, the teen – who has not been publicly identified – jumped out the door as the plane was waiting to taxi to the gate.

The passenger, a US citizen, was not injured and was taken into police custody. It's unclear why he jumped from the plane. A police spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment.

Witnesses said it was a typical landing until the emergency door opened and the plane filled with sunlight.

"The whole door goes off. I start to hear some screams," Maria Nauca, from Peru, told Fox affiliate KTVU.

"As soon as we landed, it popped open," Anielka Ruiz, another passenger, told the news station.

"We saw the light coming though because all the windows were closed – so the light came in and we're like, 'What happened?'"

Passenger Matt Crowder told NBC affiliate KNTV that the teen "jumped out onto the wing and then slipped off" onto the runway.

He said no one was able to stop the boy.

"They were yelling, 'Tell the flight attendants. Relay the message back. The door's open. Someone jumped off,' " Crowder added. "It was pretty crazy."

Copa Airlines said in a statement a crew member closed the emergency door and the plane continued on to the gate, where the remaining passengers exited without incident, according to CBS San Francisco.

Washington Post