News

Teenager survives five-hour flight hidden in wheel well

A teenager survived a five-hour flight from California to Hawaii hidden in the wheel well of an aircraft.


Hawaiian Airlines staff noticed the 16-year-old boy after the aircraft landed on Sunday morning.


He was questioned by the FBI and given a medical screening and was said to be in a stable condition, the BBC reported.


The boy is reported to have run away from home and jumped over a fence at San Jose airport to stow away on the aircraft.


He survived a lack of oxygen and freezing temperatures as the aircraft climbed to 39,000ft.


FBI spokesman Tom Simon told the AP news agency that when the flight landed in Maui, the teenager hopped down from the wheel well and started wandering around the airport grounds.


The boy had been unconscious for most of the journey.


“Our primary concern now is for the well-being of the boy, who is exceptionally lucky to have survived,” a spokeswoman for Hawaiian Airlines said.


Authorities are reviewing whether to file criminal charges against the boy.

Share article

View Comments

Jacobs Media is honoured to be the recipient of the 2020 Queen's Award for Enterprise.

The highest official awards for UK businesses since being established by royal warrant in 1965. Read more.