A yet-to-be-identified man was found dead inside the landing gear of an airplane that travelled from Lagos to Netherlands. The possible stowaway is likely to have died from hypothermia.
There are occasionally cases of people trying to transit between countries as stowaways, usually in a bid to seek asylum on arrival.
However, as these daring individuals often travel outside the pressurised envelope of the plane cabin, the outcome can be disastrous.
The KLM flight arrived from Lagos into Amsterdam Schiphol.
A spokesperson for the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee, one of two national police forces in the country, confirmed this.
“The man had holed up in the wheel arch of the plane. The low temperatures have presumably been fatal to him during the flight.”
The police further said that they were investigating the incident to confirm the man’s identity as well as the cause of death.
“The flight is a regular five-weekly service from Lagos to Amsterdam, almost always flown by one of KLM’s six A330-200s.
“In total, the aircraft flew for almost seven hours as it transited across Africa and into Europe. Most of that time was spent cruising at approximately 37,000 feet, where temperatures would have been in the region of minus 70 degrees F (-57 degrees C). Up there, the air would have been so thin that the person would likely pass out in minutes.
“As such, it’s not hugely surprising that the individual did not survive the flight. However, it’s no less distressing for the crew and airline to deal with, and equally sad for the man’s family and friends.”
