In January 2025, two male stowaways were found deceased in the landing gear compartment of a JetBlue aircraft during a routine maintenance check at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Florida. The aircraft had a complex flight schedule that day, originating from Kingston, Jamaica, with subsequent stops at New York’s JFK Airport, Salt Lake City, and finally returning to Fort Lauderdale. The advanced state of decomposition of the bodies suggested that the individuals had been in the compartment for multiple flights.
Authorities, including the Transportation Security Administration and the Federal Aviation Administration, initiated investigations to determine how the stowaways accessed the aircraft and to identify them. JetBlue expressed its commitment to cooperating fully with the authorities to understand the circumstances of the incident.
This tragic event underscores significant security concerns in aviation, as accessing an aircraft’s landing gear compartment poses severe risks, including extreme temperatures, low oxygen levels, and mechanical hazards. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, approximately 80% of individuals attempting to stow away in such compartments do not survive.