Shocking moment a stowaway is found in landing gear after he hid under plane during THREE-HOUR flight from Guatemala
THE shocking moment a man was allegedly found in the landing gear of a plane after hiding on a flight from Guatemala to Miami was captured on video on Saturday.
Footage reportedly from an American Airlines flight shows the man sitting on the ground as airport workers give him water before he was taken away on a stretcher.
He is reported to have been hidden on the flight lasting 2 hours and 50 minutes from Guatemala City to Florida.
“American Airlines flight 1182 with service from Guatemala (GUA) to Miami (MIA), arriving at 10.06 a.m. local time was met by law enforcement due to a security issue,” the airline said in a statement.
“We are working with law enforcement in their investigation.”
The footage was originally shared by Miami local social news site Only in Dade.
According to USA Today, it was filmed by a maintenance worker who failed to be named for fear of losing his job.
“This man arrived to MIA in the landing gear of plane from a Guatemala flight [sic],” read a post from Only in Dade.
“The flight was about two hours and thirty minutes and witness says he was unharmed.”
“We received this video and spoke to the person that took it, he was very scared and it is unbelievable that someone would survive this,” Dan Vasquez from Only in Dade told USA Today.
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“Can you imagine that kind of wind pressure?”
According to a spokesperson from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), 129 people have tried to stow away in wheel wells or other areas of commercial aircraft since 1947.
“Of those, 100 people (approximately 78 percent) died of injuries or exposure during the flight,” the FAA added.
A spokesperson for US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said in a statement that CBP officers apprehended the stowaway.
“The individual was evaluated by Emergency Medical Services and taken to a hospital for medical assessment,” it said.
“Persons are taking extreme risks when they try to conceal themselves in confined spaces such as an aircraft. This incident remains under investigation.”
The man will be detained by the Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection, said immigration attorney Angel Leal.
He might also be facing an expedited order of removal.
“And then at that point, if he’s in fact a person who’s trying to flee persecution and who wants to request asylum,” said Leal.
“He’ll be afforded the opportunity for a credible fear interview before an asylum officer, but more than likely he’ll be detained during that process.”
The airport and other flights were not affected by the incident, according to the Miami Herald.
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