The Chicago Tribune reports:
About five times a year, somewhere in the world, someone sneaks into the landing gear of a parked jet and then attempts to survive an incredibly dangerous ride, frequently to the United States.
Usually, the stowaways die, as was the case on Thursday, when a man climbed into the wheel well of a Miami-bound cargo jet while it was on a ramp in the Dominican Republic capital of Santo Domingo.
Shortly after takeoff from Las Americas International Airport, at 1:45 p.m., air traffic controllers saw a man fall out of the Boeing 767. The body was found by airport workers and the runway was shut down for 45 minutes.
The Tribune also found some interesting facts from the FAA on such incidents:
In the past 15 years, 81 people have tried to stow away in the wheel wells of 71 flights, and 59 of those died, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The vast majority of the stowaways got on planes in other countries and many of them attempted to fly to the United States.
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