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SA youth found dead in BA jet
29/01/2007 20:42 - (SA)
Los Angeles - A youth carrying South African documents has been found dead in the wheel well of a British Airways jet at Los Angeles International Airport, said reports on Monday.
Authorities are investigating whether the dead stowaway - described as a young black male - got into the plane at its previous stop in London or at an earlier stop in Hong Kong.
The body was discovered by the plane's pilot during a routine pre-flight check on Sunday afternoon. It was one of several incidents in recent years of people climbing into aircraft wheel wells.
The cases usually end in death because of extreme cold and lack of oxygen. Even if stowaways do survive the cold, they usually fall out of the wheel wells when the landing gear's doors open, plunging hundreds of metres to their death.
AFP reports that the man was identified by airport police as Curtis Thompson, who was in his early 20s.
During a flight between London and Los Angeles - which lasts about 10 hours - air temperatures at mid-flight altitudes can hover at around -50° C.
- SAPA
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