An elderly passenger flying for the first time accidentally pulled the emergency exit lever on a plane, causing the inflatable slide to unfold and resulting in a two-hour delay.

The incident happened aboard an Air Busan plane on Wednesday as it was preparing to take off from Gimhae Airport en route to Fukuoka, Japan. The passenger, identified only as Kim, is 69.

The passengers had all boarded and the aircraft was getting ready to head to the tarmac when the man pulled the lever.

Crew stopped the flight and removed the emergency slide before the plane was able to take off.

Without the slide, 30 of the 182 passe ngers on board had to take another flight.

An Air Busan spokesman said, "Once an emergency slide is triggered, it cannot be used again and a new one has to be installed."

The elderly passenger apparently told police he thought the emergency lever was used to open the window. An airport police officer said, "We can't charge him, he meant no harm."