Sanya Airport on Hainan Island is the first in China to warn passengers against tossing coins into a plane’s engine for ‘good luck.’
The bizarre custom, which seems to be restricted to China, has caused several flights to be delayed, passengers detained, and in some cases, hit with hefty fines.
A warning notice was seen at the airport warning that ‘tossing coins at a plane to pray for good fortune is illegal and it also violates the aviation safety code, and will harm blessings.’
The notice appeared on a screen at one of the terminal’s security checkpoints.
According to the Shanghai-based news outlet The Paper, the signage has been taken down as the wording is being revised, but will be put up again, the airport said.
The airport has not had a ‘lucky coin toss’ incident although several other airports in China have.
It seems to be a fairly new custom with the first incident reported in the international media in 2017.
In that case an elderly woman was detained but was not charged due to her age.
Still, it caused a five-hour delay to a flight departing from Shanghai Pudong Airport.
A man who did the same later that year to a Shenzhen Airlines plane was not so ‘lucky.’
The airline took legal action and he was forced to pay a US$7,000 fine.
There have been many other delays caused by coin tossers and at least five so far this year, the South China Morning Post reports.
