Stowaway survives 1-hour Indonesia flight

[webfact]

Stowaway survives 1-hour Indonesia flight

Indonesian media reports say a man has survived a one-hour flight by hiding in a passenger jet's landing gear bay

(SBS) An Indonesian man has survived a one-hour flight from Sumatra island to Jakarta by hiding in the passenger jet's landing gear bay, media reports say.

The man, identified as 21-year-old Mario Steven Ambarita, crawled out of the wheel well of a Garuda Indonesia plane after it landed at the Soekarno-Hatta airport, dazed and staggering, the Kompas daily said.

Garuda spokesman Pujobroto said the man appeared to have breached the fence at Sultan Syarif Kasim II airport in Riau province on Sumatra island and climbed into the aircraft's wheel well as it was preparing for take off.

"He knew that the plane would stop for a moment before taking off," Pujobroto was quoted as saying.

Ambarita was treated at the airport's clinic.

Reports said Ambarita had wanted to visit Jakarta, having been born in the capital, but could not afford a plane ticket.

Full story: http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2015/04/08/stowaway-survives-1-hour-indonesia-flight

-- SBS 2015-04-08

[webfact]

Indonesian man injured after taking free flight to Jakarta by hiding in plane's wheel well
Kyodo

A 21-year-old Indonesian man who crawled into a plane's wheel well and took a free flight to Jakarta barely survived, enduring freezing temperatures at 10,000 metres.

The young man, identified as Mario Stevan Ambarita, was able to sneak into the wheel storage compartment of Garuda Indonesia's Jakarta-bound Flight 177 just before it took off from Riau province, reports said yesterday.

His motive was unclear. But Garuda Indonesia quoted his relatives as saying that Ambarita, who lived in Pekanbaru city all his life, had dreamed of going to Jakarta.

For the past 10 days, Ambarita had watched the Sultan Syarif Kasim II Airport's goings-on in Pekanbaru. He also learned how to sneak into a plane by researching on the internet.

He hopped the security fence on Tuesday, climbing unobserved into the wheel well.

Full story: http://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/1760125/indonesian-man-injured-after-taking-free-flight-jakarta-hiding-planes

-- South China Morning Post 2015-04-08

[Seastallion]

This 2nd report answers a few questions, but raises others.

He researched on the internet but did not know that at that altitude he would freeze (and maybe suffer oxygen deprivation)?

I actually feel sorry for him....not for his injuries but for him being so keen to go to a big city but unable to afford it.

There must be many like him, but smarter not to attempt it, or dumber not to be able to research it.

[GentlemanJim]

Mmmm not sure how this is physically possible. It is around -55deg C at 10 000 m and unless you were a himalayan sherpa who has lived atop Everest for a year there is just physically not enough oxygen. I wonder if the 10 000 m is an assumption or mis reporting? I wonder if the 'island hopper remained around 8000-10000 ft then survival is very likely. I guess however if they were at 10k meters they were only there for about 15 mins in a one hour flight, but still his survival is remarkable, he deserves a long weekend on the pop in jakarta if the details are correct.

Edited April 8, 2015 by GentlemanJim

[F4UCorsair]

Mmmm not sure how this is physically possible. It is around -55deg C at 10 000 m and unless you were a himalayan sherpa who has lived atop Everest for a year there is just physically not enough oxygen. I wonder if the 10 000 m is an assumption or mis reporting? I wonder if the 'island hopper remained around 8000-10000 ft then survival is very likely.

A lot of heat is generated in aircraft tyres on takeoff (more on landing, but irrelevant here) and when the wheel well doors are closed, it's contained, and given off the tyres, so over an hour's flight, 20 minutes climb, 20 minutes cruise and 20 minutes descent, temperature is less important than hypoxia. There are often hydraulic fluid tanks and a lot of wiring looms in wheel wells also, all giving off heat.

He was probably skinny, so little oxygen in body tissue, but again the wheel well doors contain to some degree. The air at 330000 feet is rare, so the denser air in the wheel wells would flow out qiite fast as the aircraft climbed.

Men have climbed Everest without supplemental oxygen, so possible if only at 33000' for 20 minutes.

Thrre's not much space in any wheel wells that I know of, so being crushed was a real risk too.

Edited April 8, 2015 by F4UCorsair

[mlmcleod]

From my perspective, this shows how dangerous flying in the Orient can be. Had he been a terrorist he could have easily have stowed a bomb in the wheel well!!! Security is definatly lacking at the airport in question!

[MrY]

As F4UCorsair said, there's plenty of heat in the wheel well for a one hour flight, it might even get a bit hot at first. He would of course have suffered from hypoxia, and must have passed out at altitude. If a stowaway does not indeed get crushed by gear retraction, then it is very likely he'd get sucked out when the gear is extended [all of a sudden]. He would definitely be dazed and confused after surviving all that.

[GentlemanJim]

As F4UCorsair said, there's plenty of heat in the wheel well for a one hour flight, it might even get a bit hot at first. He would of course have suffered from hypoxia, and must have passed out at altitude. If a stowaway does not indeed get crushed by gear retraction, then it is very likely he'd get sucked out when the gear is extended [all of a sudden]. He would definitely be dazed and confused after surviving all that.

Can you explain how he would be sucked out when the the gear is lowered?

[GentlemanJim]

Double post

Edited April 8, 2015 by GentlemanJim

[uptheos]

From my perspective, this shows how dangerous flying in the Orient can be. Had he been a terrorist he could have easily have stowed a bomb in the wheel well!!! Security is definatly lacking at the airport in question!

Or just blown himself up at any time the aircraft was in the air.

[Lekong]

Mmmm not sure how this is physically possible. It is around -55deg C at 10 000 m and unless you were a himalayan sherpa who has lived atop Everest for a year there is just physically not enough oxygen. I wonder if the 10 000 m is an assumption or mis reporting? I wonder if the 'island hopper remained around 8000-10000 ft then survival is very likely. I guess however if they were at 10k meters they were only there for about 15 mins in a one hour flight, but still his survival is remarkable, he deserves a long weekend on the pop in jakarta if the details are correct.

I guy in one African country, I am sure it was from Senegal when to France on two occasions by stowaway in the land gears of one airline that I don't remember. That is a journey of about 4 hours. He was very successful in the first trip and was repatriated back to Senegal. He tried it the second time and was killed in the second attempt when the landing gears were opened for landing and he fell out and died.

[MrY]

As F4UCorsair said, there's plenty of heat in the wheel well for a one hour flight, it might even get a bit hot at first. He would of course have suffered from hypoxia, and must have passed out at altitude. If a stowaway does not indeed get crushed by gear retraction, then it is very likely he'd get sucked out when the gear is extended [all of a sudden]. He would definitely be dazed and confused after surviving all that.

Can you explain how he would be sucked out when the the gear is lowered?

Rapid pressure drop followed by massively turbulent airflow. Most stowaways that are still alive at gear extension get sucked out.

[apalink_thailand]

From my perspective, this shows how dangerous flying in the Orient can be. Had he been a terrorist he could have easily have stowed a bomb in the wheel well!!! Security is definatly lacking at the airport in question!

Been watching too much mainstream media mate ;-)