A woman passenger aboard a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight sparked panic after she mistakenly opened the emergency exit door of the aircraft thinking it led to the toilet.

The national carrier said the plane was on the runaway of the Manchester airport early on Saturday when the woman pressed the button, opening the emergency exit door.

“The PIA flight, PK 702, from Manchester to Islamabad was delayed by seven hours. The departure was delayed on Friday night when a passenger erroneously opened the emergency exit causing the emergency chute to activate,” said a PIA spokesperson.

After the incident, about 40 passengers were offloaded along with their luggage in line with the standard operating procedure.

The PIA said that the passengers were provided transportation and hotel accommodation and later on adjusted on other flight.

PIA chief executive Air Marshal Arshad Malik ordered an inquiry into the incident.

The Pakistan flag carrier has been running into losses for years and the government is trying to improve it.