On Christmas Eve, a plane that departed from Chicago and arrived in Hawaii was found to have a deceased individual in its landing gear compartment.
The body was discovered on Tuesday, December 24, in the ‘wheel well of the main landing gears’ of a United Airlines aircraft, leaving authorities puzzled over the incident.
Flight UA202 departed from Chicago O’Hare International Airport at 9:31 PM Eastern Time and arrived at Kahului Airport in Maui at 2:21 PM Hawaii Standard Time, culminating in an eight-hour and 41-minute journey.
United Airlines released a statement to CNN, saying: “Upon arrival at Kahului airport in Maui on Tuesday, a body was found in the wheel well of one of the main landing gears on a United aircraft.
“The wheel well was only accessible from outside of the aircraft.”
Authorities have yet to determine how or when the person managed to enter the plane’s landing gear area, and the Maui Police Department has launched an investigation into the matter.
A police spokesperson informed Hawaii News Now, a local news outlet, stating: “The Maui Police Department is currently conducting an active investigation regarding a deceased individual discovered on an incoming flight from the mainland this afternoon.
“At this time, no further details are available.”
While concealing oneself in an airplane’s wheel well is not a common choice, it is a known method for stowaways, albeit one that carries significant risks.
For instance, a man survived a two-and-a-half-hour flight from Algeria to France on December 29 last year, albeit in critical condition with hypothermia, and was subsequently hospitalized by French authorities.
During flights, stowaways face extreme temperatures as low as -81°F, posing risks such as hypoxia and hyperthermia, alongside the danger of being crushed when the wheels are retracted after takeoff.
There is also the risk of falling from the plane’s wheel well when the landing gear is deployed, typically at an altitude of around 1,500 feet. Simple Flying notes: “Another significant risk involves the possibility of stowaways falling from the plane’s wheel well before it reaches its destination. Typically, the landing gear is deployed at an altitude of around 1,500 feet, leaving stowaways with very little advance notice.”
Stowaways often resort to such perilous methods to seek asylum, although the specific reasons behind the individual’s attempt to climb aboard the flight from Chicago to Maui remain unknown.