MIAMI – The discovery of two dead stowaways in the landing gear compartment of a JetBlue Airways plane Monday night in Fort Lauderdale has reignited concerns about aviation security and the grim risks of such attempts, which have historically resulted in a high fatality rate.
The bodies of two males were found during a routine inspection after JetBlue Flight 1801 landed at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport.
The airline said the circumstances of how the individuals accessed the aircraft are under investigation.
The identities of the stowaways remain unknown, though Jamaican authorities have noted reports speculating that the individuals were Jamaican nationals, but no confirmation has been made.
A deadly history of stowaways
Instances of stowaways hiding in aircraft wheel wells have been documented for decades.
In an interview with CNN, Mary Schiavo, former inspector general of the Department of Transportation, revealed that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has tracked 128 cases worldwide from 1947 to 2020. Over 75% of those attempts ended in death due to the extreme dangers of the wheel well, including hypothermia, oxygen deprivation, and the risk of being crushed by landing gear mechanisms.
“The most likely country for wheel-well stowaways used to be Cuba, often due to immigration or family reunification efforts,” Schiavo told CNN. “But the dangers are profound. Survivors may suffer long-term physical damage from the noise, lack of oxygen, or freezing temperatures.”
Schiavo emphasized the severe security implications of such breaches, particularly given the extensive surveillance and background checks required for anyone working on airport tarmacs. “The fact that this keeps happening is a serious aviation security violation,” she said.
Recent incidents highlight risks
The JetBlue incident mirrors a similar tragedy over the holidays when a stowaway’s body was found in the wheel well of a United Airlines flight from Chicago to Maui.
In both cases, investigators are probing how unauthorized individuals bypassed airport security to access the aircraft.
The JetBlue Airbus A320 made multiple stops Monday, starting in Kingston, Jamaica, before flying to JFK, Salt Lake City and back to JFK, eventually landing in Fort Lauderdale.
Investigators are exploring whether the stowaways boarded the plane during its time in Jamaica.
At cruising altitudes of around 38,000 feet, wheel wells are unpressurized and unheated, with temperatures dropping well below freezing.
Survival is rare, and fatalities are often caused by hypothermia or asphyxiation.
What’s next
The Broward County Medical Examiner’s Office will conduct autopsies to determine the cause of death.
Meanwhile, Broward Sheriff’s Office detectives and federal investigators are examining whether security lapses at any of the airports played a role.
Mauricio MaldonadoMauricio Maldonado is a digital editor for CBS Miami and has been a digital journalist in the South Florida area since 1997. Mauricio started at the Miami Herald in 1990 and transitioned over to their online team in 1997. In 2001, he moved north to lend his talents to SunSentinel.com, where he spent 17 years. Mauricio has been with CBS Miami since 2018.
