A man’s body was found in the landing gear bay of a plane that arrived in Moscow from Rimini, Italy. Investigators believe he was a stowaway who died from exposure to cold temperatures at high altitude.
“Apparently the man died from exposure to cold; we suspect
that he was a stowaway,” a spokesperson for the investigation
said.
The body was discovered on Thursday after the Airbus Ð-330
aircraft landed in Moscow’s Vnukovo airport following a night
flight.
Blood drops were discovered during a post-landing inspection of
the right landing gear, which prompted a thorough search of the
bay and the grisly discovery.
Investigators from Moscow’s air traffic police are trying to
identify the unfortunate traveller.
The Russian aviation regulator said it will consult with Italian
authorities on how the pre-flight servicing and inspection of the
plane was carried out in Rimini. The aircraft belongs to the
Russian charter airline I Fly.
Trying to save ticket money by sneaking into the landing gear is
not uncommon, though usually fatal. With freezing temperatures as
low as -55C and scarce oxygen in the high-altitude air, such
trips are grueling ordeals for stowaways.
In 2010, a teenage orphan boy traveled a record 300km in a plane’s landing gear
after escaping an orphanage in eastern Siberia. He was exhausted
by the journey, and was taken to hospital upon arrival.
This article originally appeared on: RT