Narrative:

There was an incident involving a passenger; presumed to be intoxicated; while they were deplaning [the] flight. While deplaning the aircraft the passenger stumbled backwards while on the jet bridge and over the improperly attached safety netting sidewall; between the gap between the aircraft and the jet bridge; and down onto the ramp below.as the first officer of [this] flight I first interacted with [the passenger] when he approached the gate agent [at departure airport] to inquire whether or not his flight was delayed and if he had missed it. [The passenger] was standing approximately 3-4 feet from myself at this time. I did not smell any alcohol on his person. After the gate agent informed [the passenger] that the flight was delayed and instructed him to return for boarding in approximately ten minutes; he left the podium and walked away. While walking away I noticed [the passenger] to be having trouble walking; but not in an intoxicated manner; more so that we was walking with a limp as if he had a medical condition with his leg. At that point the captain and I went down to the aircraft in order to pre-flight and prepare for departure.when [the passenger] boarded the aircraft I was using the forward lavatory so I did not have any interaction with him during this phase. However; according to the flight attendants [the passenger] stumbled while getting on board the aircraft but was fine while he proceeded down the aisle. When the flight attendants brought this to the attention of the captain and myself; the gate agent followed up by informing us that both her and the supervisor had cleared [the passenger]; and that he was not intoxicated. Rather; it was found out by the gate agent that [the passenger] had an injury to his knee; which was giving him trouble walking; and offered an explanation for the limp as well as the stumble reported by the flight attendants. In order to be sure of his state; the captain went to use the aft lavatory as [the passenger] had now requested to move in order to have an aisle seat rather than a window. When the captain interacted with [the passenger] he noted no smell of alcohol on his person or his breath and that he had no slurring of speech and was not disruptive in any manner. Both the captain and flight attendants noted that [the passenger] sat quietly and did not disturb anyone when he boarded the aircraft. The captain instructed the flight attendants; however; to not serve [the passenger] alcohol during the flight at which point they informed us it was not a service flight. No one; including [the passenger]; was served any food or beverage during the flight.upon arrival [the passenger] was the last person to deplane the aircraft. At this point; I was in the flight deck beginning the secure procedure and the captain was performing the post-flight walk around. Out of the corner of my eye I saw [the passenger] having difficulty walking; but was concentrated on my post-flight duties and did not pay it too much attention. At this point; I heard the flight attendants shouting 'sir!' and again out of the corner of my eye I saw [the passenger] stumbling backwards. I turned around just in time to witness [the passenger] fall through the gap between the jet bridge and the aircraft and onto the ramp below. The jet bridge was parked an abnormally far distance from the aircraft; approximately 3 feet. Additionally; the adapter used to deplane from the crj-900 aircraft onto the jet bridge was not properly attached to the hook on the jet bridge. Rather; it was attached to the metal fencing posts which caused the safety netting to be loose and disconnect as [the passenger] tripped backwards over it. As I exited the aircraft to see if [the passenger] was alright the captain came running up to his side. Paramedics were called to the aircraft and [the passenger] received proper medical attention. At first; [the passenger] declined transport to the hospital but later seconded himself and decided to let the paramedics transport him to the hospital.the jet bridge should not be parked as far from the aircraft as it was; and gate agents should take their time in connecting the adapter to the jet bridge to make sure it is properly attached in order to prevent another incident like this from happening again.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: CRJ-900 First Officer reported a disembarking passenger stumbled and fell through a space between the jet bridge and parked aircraft onto the pavement below.

Narrative: There was an incident involving a passenger; presumed to be intoxicated; while they were deplaning [the] flight. While deplaning the aircraft the passenger stumbled backwards while on the jet bridge and over the improperly attached safety netting sidewall; between the gap between the aircraft and the jet bridge; and down onto the ramp below.As the First Officer of [this] flight I first interacted with [the passenger] when he approached the Gate Agent [at departure airport] to inquire whether or not his flight was delayed and if he had missed it. [The passenger] was standing approximately 3-4 feet from myself at this time. I did not smell any alcohol on his person. After the Gate Agent informed [the passenger] that the flight was delayed and instructed him to return for boarding in approximately ten minutes; he left the podium and walked away. While walking away I noticed [the passenger] to be having trouble walking; but not in an intoxicated manner; more so that we was walking with a limp as if he had a medical condition with his leg. At that point the Captain and I went down to the aircraft in order to pre-flight and prepare for departure.When [the passenger] boarded the aircraft I was using the forward lavatory so I did not have any interaction with him during this phase. However; according to the Flight Attendants [the passenger] stumbled while getting on board the aircraft but was fine while he proceeded down the aisle. When the Flight Attendants brought this to the attention of the Captain and myself; the Gate Agent followed up by informing us that both her and the Supervisor had cleared [the passenger]; and that he was not intoxicated. Rather; it was found out by the Gate Agent that [the passenger] had an injury to his knee; which was giving him trouble walking; and offered an explanation for the limp as well as the stumble reported by the Flight Attendants. In order to be sure of his state; the Captain went to use the aft lavatory as [the passenger] had now requested to move in order to have an aisle seat rather than a window. When the Captain interacted with [the passenger] he noted no smell of alcohol on his person or his breath and that he had no slurring of speech and was not disruptive in any manner. Both the Captain and Flight Attendants noted that [the passenger] sat quietly and did not disturb anyone when he boarded the aircraft. The Captain instructed the Flight Attendants; however; to not serve [the passenger] alcohol during the flight at which point they informed us it was not a service flight. No one; including [the passenger]; was served any food or beverage during the flight.Upon arrival [the passenger] was the last person to deplane the aircraft. At this point; I was in the flight deck beginning the secure procedure and the Captain was performing the post-flight walk around. Out of the corner of my eye I saw [the passenger] having difficulty walking; but was concentrated on my post-flight duties and did not pay it too much attention. At this point; I heard the Flight Attendants shouting 'Sir!' and again out of the corner of my eye I saw [the passenger] stumbling backwards. I turned around just in time to witness [the passenger] fall through the gap between the jet bridge and the aircraft and onto the ramp below. The jet bridge was parked an abnormally far distance from the aircraft; approximately 3 feet. Additionally; the adapter used to deplane from the CRJ-900 aircraft onto the jet bridge was not properly attached to the hook on the jet bridge. Rather; it was attached to the metal fencing posts which caused the safety netting to be loose and disconnect as [the passenger] tripped backwards over it. As I exited the aircraft to see if [the passenger] was alright the Captain came running up to his side. Paramedics were called to the aircraft and [the passenger] received proper medical attention. At first; [the passenger] declined transport to the hospital but later seconded himself and decided to let the paramedics transport him to the hospital.The jet bridge should not be parked as far from the aircraft as it was; and Gate Agents should take their time in connecting the adapter to the jet bridge to make sure it is properly attached in order to prevent another incident like this from happening again.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.