Investigators look for security breach after 2 stowaways found dead on JetBlue plane
FORT LAUDERDALE - Broward Sheriff and federal investigators are trying to determine where a security breach occurred that allowed two stowaways to enter a landing gear compartment on a JetBlue plane. Their bodies were found late Monday night after the plane, on a flight from John F. Kennedy International in New York, landed at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International.
Flight data showed the aircraft had a busy schedule. The plane began its day in Kingston, Jamaica, according to the Transportation Security Administration. It then flew to JFK in New York, then to Salt Lake City, Utah, then back to JFK before ending up in Fort Lauderdale, according to CBS News senior transportation correspondent Kris Van Cleave, who said the plane overnighted in Kingston after arriving from JFK on Jan. 5th.
Investigators said they are reviewing surveillance video from all the airports where the flight operated over the last few days to determine when they must have snuck onto the jet.
According to investigators, the passengers had deplaned and the bodies were discovered during a routine inspection by a ground crew. Broward Sheriff deputies and fire rescue personnel were called to the scene.
"The circumstances surrounding how they accessed the aircraft remain under investigation," JetBlue said. "This is a heartbreaking situation, and we are committed to working closely with authorities to support their efforts to understand how this occurred."
Neither man worked for JetBlue, according to an airline spokesperson. Investigators have yet to identify the men or determine how they bypassed security.
Investigators are exploring whether the stowaways boarded the plane during its time in Jamaica.
Jamaican authorities have noted reports speculating that the individuals were Jamaican nationals, but no confirmation has been made.
Deadly hiding spot
John Gagliano, an aviation attorney and pilot, said hiding in an airplane's undercarriage is one of the deadliest places a person can attempt to stow away.
The landing gear compartment, which is about the size of a car trunk, stores the plane's retractable wheels. There is no insulation from the deafening engine and wind noise, little oxygen at high altitudes, and plummeting temperatures.
"At 30,000 feet, temperatures can drop 90 degrees colder than on the ground," Gagliano explained. "If it's 50 degrees on the ground, it's -42 degrees at cruising altitude. You're going to freeze to death at -42 degrees if you're there for any amount of time."
Stowaways in landing gear compartments are not unheard of, according to Gagliano.
"If someone is really determined to overcome security and they have the knowledge or someone helping them, it's certainly possible," Gagliano said.
A similar incident happened over the holidays in Hawaii. A body was found in the wheel well of a United Airlines flight from Chicago when the plane landed in Maui. There is no explanation for how the person got on the ramp.