Stowaway found alive on cargo plane from Johannesburg on a cargo flight from South Africa, a stowaway was found alive at Schiphol on Sunday morning.
A stowaway was discovered in the wheel section under the front of a freight plane that arrived at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport from South Africa on Sunday, Dutch military police have said.
The stowaway was said to be doing well, considering the circumstances. Ambulance, firefighters and the Marechaussee rushed to the scene to attend to the man.
“First, it is important that the man recovers the case is transferred to the immigration authorities,” a spokesperson of the Marechaussee told NH Nieuws.
A police spokesperson said the man’s age and nationality had not yet been determined. “Our first concern of course was for his health,” they said. “This is definitely very unusual that someone was able to survive the cold at such a height – very, very unusual.”
The lack of oxygen at high altitude and the cold temperatures experienced during a flight while hidden at the landing gear makes it rare for stowaways to survive.
The spokesperson said that it was not clear if the stowaway got on the Cargolux Boeing 747 in Johannesburg or during a stop in the Kenyan capital city of Nairobi.