Cape Town - The body of a stowaway has been found at Heathrow Airport in
London, according to Airports Company South Africa (Acsa).
British
Airways has confirmed a body was found in the landing gear bay of a
Boeing 747 which arrived at Heathrow on a flight from Cape Town. The
person is believed to be the same person who airport security tried to
stop from scaling the Cape Town International Airport fencing on
Wednesday.
According to Acsa, the incident took place at
approximately 20:40, when an unidentified person was detected scaling
the perimeter fence at Cape Town International Airport (CTIA).
The
airport immediately responded and as a security patrol officer
attempted to apprehend the man he ran in the direction of a British
Airways aircraft already in its holding pattern ready for takeoff. The
security officer could not approach the aircraft for safety reasons.
A
search of the airfield was immediately conducted but the person was not
found. Acsa then contacted British Airways, in addition to various
other parties. The aircraft proceeded to London. Further sweeps were
conducted of the runway and the broader airfield.
British Airways spokesperson Stephen Forbes said, "This is a very
rare and sad event and our thoughts are with the individual's family. We
are liaising with the South African authorities and Cape Town airport
as they investigate how this incident took place."
Acsa said in a media release that it is concerned about the loss of life
and thus views this incident in the utmost serious light.
A full investigation will be undertaken.
