Police arrested 80-year-old woman after passengers reported that she threw coins in the plane during boarding China Southern Airlines CZ380 on the pavement Pudong international airport in Shanghai.

"Passenger, nicknamed Qiu, who has no previous criminal record or mental health issues, claimed that she threw the coins as a prayer for a safe flight," - said in a statement to the Shanghai police. He added that staff found 9 coins in the scene, including the ones that got into the engine of the Airbus A320 and other scattered on the ground nearby.

Airlines forced the evacuation of 150 passengers from the plane that was originally supposed to depart at 12:40 local time. "To ensure the safety of the personnel of technical service, China Southern has conducted a thorough check of the engine", - reads the statement of the carrier.

The plane eventually took off at 6:16 PM. And arrived at the destination 5 hours late from the original time. The total value of the coins that were scattered is 1.7 yuan (25 US cents), but local media has estimated that the cost of the inspection of the engine and flight delays can easily cost $1 thousand.
sections: Society, World News, Accidents