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| Stowaway fell to death from plane on to London office after 8,000-mile flight | Stowaway fell to death from plane on to London office after 8,000-mile flight |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A suspected stowaway has been found on the roof of a west London office building after plunging to his death from a British Airways flight. | A suspected stowaway has been found on the roof of a west London office building after plunging to his death from a British Airways flight. |
| The man is believed to have sneaked onto the Boeing 747 before it flew more than 8,000 miles (12,875km) from Johannesburg in South Africa to Heathrow. | The man is believed to have sneaked onto the Boeing 747 before it flew more than 8,000 miles (12,875km) from Johannesburg in South Africa to Heathrow. |
| The victim fell on to the offices of online marketplace Notonthehighstreet.com on a busy road in Richmond, south-west London, which is below the flight path, on Thursday morning. Flight data reveals the plane would have been at an altitude of around 1,400 feet when it passed over the area. | The victim fell on to the offices of online marketplace Notonthehighstreet.com on a busy road in Richmond, south-west London, which is below the flight path, on Thursday morning. Flight data reveals the plane would have been at an altitude of around 1,400 feet when it passed over the area. |
| Related: One in four plane stowaways can survive, but London case is astonishing | |
| A second man survived the journey and is said to be in a “serious” condition in hospital. | |
| A Scotland Yard spokeswoman said: “We were called at 9.35am on Thursday 18 June to Kew Road, Richmond, to reports of a body discovered. Officers and the London Ambulance Service attended and found the body of a dead man on the roof of a business premises. The death is currently being treated as unexplained. | A Scotland Yard spokeswoman said: “We were called at 9.35am on Thursday 18 June to Kew Road, Richmond, to reports of a body discovered. Officers and the London Ambulance Service attended and found the body of a dead man on the roof of a business premises. The death is currently being treated as unexplained. |
| “A postmortem examination will be held in due course and inquiries are ongoing to establish the male’s identity. No arrests have been made. | “A postmortem examination will be held in due course and inquiries are ongoing to establish the male’s identity. No arrests have been made. |
| “In regards to the male who survived, police were alerted at 8.28am on 18 June to reports of a suspected stowaway on a flight from Johannesburg to Heathrow. | “In regards to the male who survived, police were alerted at 8.28am on 18 June to reports of a suspected stowaway on a flight from Johannesburg to Heathrow. |
| “The man, aged believed to be between 25 to 30, has been taken to a west London hospital and currently remains in a serious condition. Inquiries are ongoing to establish the man’s identity.” | “The man, aged believed to be between 25 to 30, has been taken to a west London hospital and currently remains in a serious condition. Inquiries are ongoing to establish the man’s identity.” |
| 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.” | 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.” |
| Related: Stowaway death of man who died with a single pound in his pocket | |
| A spokesman for Notonthehighstreet.com said the the incident was unrelated to the business or its team members. “We are co-operating with the ongoing police enquiry,” he said. | A spokesman for Notonthehighstreet.com said the the incident was unrelated to the business or its team members. “We are co-operating with the ongoing police enquiry,” he said. |
| Reverend Neil Summers, from the St John the Divine of Richmond church opposite where the body was found, said he was “shocked” by the incident and would lead prayers for the dead man. | |
| “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,” he said. | |
| David Learmount, an aviation expert and consulting editor of Flight International magazine, said the fact that one of the two men survived the long flight suggests he may have been able to get into the baggage hold section of the aircraft, which would raise serious questions of security. | |
| Learmount said: “If these two were neither airline nor airport staff and somehow managed to get on a flight then it becomes a serious security issue. Just how did they get (on the restricted) airside at the airport? | |
| “Then there’s the question of just where on the plane these two were. If a person was in the wheel well of a plane on an 11-hour flight there’s really very little chance of surviving. | |
| “You are either going to be frozen to death by temperatures of minus 50C or you are going to die through lack of oxygen with the plane flying at 35,000ft.” | |
| There have been previous cases of stowaways plunging to their deaths in 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. | There have been previous cases of stowaways plunging to their deaths in 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. | 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 that the young man from Mozambique is believed to have survived freezing temperatures of up to -60C (-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. | An inquest into his death heard that the young man from Mozambique is believed to have survived freezing temperatures of up to -60C (-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. |