'Shocking' Death Of Plane Stowaway

'Shocking' Death Of Plane Stowaway

A stowaway has plunged to his death from a plane and landed on a business in a busy high street - while another is in hospital.

The two men are believed to have clung on to a British Airways plane as it flew more than 8,000 miles (12,875km) from Johannesburg in South Africa to Heathrow.

The victim fell on to the roof of the business NotOnTheHighStreet.com in Kew Road, Richmond, south west London, yesterday morning.

Police and an ambulance were called just after 9.30am and found the man dead at the scene.

It is understood the second man, aged between 25 and 30, was found unconscious at Heathrow around an hour earlier.

He was taken to a west London hospital where police said he remains in a serious condition.

Police are investigating who the men are and exactly what happened.

Stowaways desperate to start a new life in Britain have fallen to their deaths from planes flying over the Richmond area before.

Reverend Neil Summers, from the St John the Divine of Richmond church opposite where the body was found, said he was "shocked" and would lead prayers for the dead man.

He said: "It's shocking, you do not expect these things to happen on your patch really.

"In one sense it's not totally surprising as it's happened before.

"It's very shocking when it's so close to you.

"We are going to say prayers for the people concerned tonight."

A Scotland Yard spokeswoman said: "A post-mortem examination will be held in due course and inquiries are ongoing to establish the male's identity. No arrests have been made."

A British Airways spokeswoman said: "We are working with the Metropolitan Police and the authorities in Johannesburg to establish the facts surrounding this very rare case."

The airline said it could not comment further on the flight because police are investigating.

NotOnTheHighStreet.com said in a statement: "Officers and the London ambulance service attended and found the body of a male on the roof of the premises.

"The death is currently being treated as unexplained but early indications are that the body may be that of an airline stowaway."

They said the incident "is unrelated to the business or its team members" and they are co-operating with the ongoing police inquiry.

While rare, there have been other cases when stowaways have plunged to their deaths in the leafy streets of west London after smuggling themselves on to planes.

They hide themselves in the landing gear where they are exposed to the elements and have to endure plummeting temperatures. Most are killed by the cold and lack of oxygen at high altitudes.

In September 2012, Jose Matada, 26, died after falling from the undercarriage of a Heathrow-bound flight from Angola on to a quiet street in Mortlake, west London.

An inquest into his death heard the young man from Mozambique is believed to have survived freezing temperatures of up to minus 60C (minus 76F) for most of the 12-hour flight.

But it was believed he was "dead or nearly dead" by the time he hit the ground.

Close

What's Hot