Stowaway Teen Flies To Hawaii Clinging To Landing Gear After Breaching A Fence At San Jose Airport
SAN JOSE (CBS SF) -- A 16 year old boy is alive after he apparently breached a perimeter at Mineta San Jose International Airport, climbed into the rear landing gear of a Hawaiian Airlines 767 bound for Maui, and then was spotted on the tarmac at his destination after a 5 hour flight.
Surveillance video captured the teen climbing the fence Sunday before sneaking onto Flight 45.
The teen said he lost consciousness quickly on the flight, but woke up before landing.
Temperatures can drop down past 40 below outside a jet at 38,000 feet, and oxygen deprivation has killed other stowaways on similar situations, but the teen appeared to be in good medical condition, though was dazed and staggering around after walking away from the plane, according to initial reports.
A Hawaiian Airlines employee told KPIX 5, "Everyone is trying to figure out how he would have survived."
The crew reported seeing footprints all over the wheel well, as the teen possibly tried to find a warmer place in the landing gear compartment.
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After the landing in Maui, airline workers spotted the stowaway and called authorities.
The FBI responded and temporarily took him into custody.
Kahului Airport manager Marvin Moniz said the teen was a little hungry, quiet, and "very cooperative."
Moniz told The Maui News that the boy had been in some sort of fight with his parents in Santa Clara before running away and hiding on the jet.
Transportation Security Administration officials in Maui cleared the plane and swept it for any contraband as a precaution.
The minor will not be charged at this point, and is being turned over to child protective services.
He remains in custody in Maui as family service workers investigate the situation.
A photo of the teen being loaded into an ambulance in Maui was posted by The Maui News and shared on Twitter.
Boy survives flight in wheel well to Hawaii. Watch News 10 at 11p for info. Photo credit Chris Sugidono/Maui News. pic.twitter.com/h3KvgSkQwI
— Barnett Parker (@BarnettParker) April 21, 2014