Stowaway plunges to his death from plane over London but another survives

A stowaway has died after falling from a British Airways Boeing 747 jet onto a shop in southwest London. He and another man are believed to have clung on to the passenger plane as it flew more than 8,000 miles from Johannesburg in South Africa to Heathrow. The second man, aged between 25 and 30, is in a serious condition in a west London hospital after miraculously surviving the ordeal.

At this time there is no evidence to link the death to the discovery of a stowaway in the undercarriage of a plane at Heathrow Airport, however this is one line enquiry into identifying the deceased and the circumstances of his death.

Spokesman for the shop upon which the man fell and died

British Airways described it as a “very rare case” and said it is working with police in London and Johannesburg to establish the facts. A Scotland Yard spokeswoman said: “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.” Stowaways died when falling from planes of the Heathrow flightpath in 2012 and 2013.

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.

September 2012, Jose Matada

Europe Stowaway death