Stowaway, 16, survives flying more than 5 hours in freezing temperatures in WHEEL WELL of plane

[malaise]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2609270/BREAKING-NEWS-16-year-old-boy-survives-UNHARMED-flying-California-Hawaii-wheel-well.html
<snip>
A 16-year-old stowaway has miraculously survived flying halfway across the Pacific in the wheel well of a flight from California to Hawaii - despite temperatures of -81F (-62C) at 38,000 feet.

The teen was discovered on the tarmac at the Maui airport on Sunday carrying no ID or belongings - apart from a comb - and told the FBI he had run away from home after an argument with his parents.

'Kid's lucky to be alive,' FBI spokesman Tom Simon in Honolulu said on Sunday night.

Among those skeptical about his journey, medical experts said his body would have had to fall into a hibernation-like state - with his heart beating only a couple of times a minute - for him to survive.

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This kid one one lucky young man. Hope he has a good life.

[Kelvin Mace]

1. Yet another example that airport security (i.e. the TSA) is a massive joke

Hundreds of billions of dollars since 2001 and a moody teenager can penetrate their security.

[malaise]

2. That's true too but not everyone is a terrorist

[Kelvin Mace]

3. Some parents of teens might disagree...

Seriously though, what happens when some terrorist figures out that the easiest way to get a bomb on an aircraft is in the wheel well?

[malaise]

5. ROFL

Good question.

The sad truth is pre-9/11. we'd celebrate this little upstart as an adventurous young man

[Jenoch]

17. Are you certain the TSA is responsible

for the security of the perimeter of airports?

[Kelvin Mace]

36. Between the TSA, the airports

and the rivers of cash poured in to 13 years worth of Kabuki Security Theatre, it sure as hell is going to be their fault when a plane goes down.

[Major Nikon]

24. The TSA is not responsible for airport perimeter security

That is the responsibility of whoever owns the airport. In this case the San Jose airport authority.

[Kelvin Mace]

35. So, no taxpayer funds have been appropriated by these airports

for perimeter security?

I'm guessing they all scooped out tons of cash and are still scooping. Also, TSA's excuse when an airliner gets blown out of the sky is going to be, what? We took hundreds of billions and ignored the obvious hole in our security?

(Not jumping on you, just pointing out that TSA's excuse will not hold water. You can be damned sure that should such a thing happen during Obama's remaining time in office the Dems can kiss the house, senate, White House, well pretty much the entire Republic, goodbye).

[Major Nikon]

37. No security system is going to be infallible regardless of how much money you throw at it

There are hundreds of airports all across the US which run scheduled airline service, some of which you can drive on to with no restrictions. Should we secure those at great expense? The Dallas/Fort Worth airport alone is bigger than the island of Manhattan. Should we spend billions turning massive land areas into impenetrable fortresses? Even if we did, you can fly a $10,000 aircraft on to every single one of them with the exception of Washington National and nobody is going to question you.

So we can certainly play 'what if' all day long. The reality is it hasn't happened, but regardless of how determined we are to prevent it, if someone is determined enough, it will happen.

[Kelvin Mace]

38. Not looking for infallibility

just sensible behaviour.

We have wasted Scrooge McDuck-sized vaults of cash on the ILLUSION of security while ignoring actual security.

What is going to make us safer: TSA agents sexually abusing men women and children looking for bottles of "liquids" that are 0.1 ounces above the legal limit, or posting one agent at each plane to insure that no one sticks a bomb in the wheel well?

The sad reality is that 90% of "security" is simply abusing the public so you can "be seen" providing "security".

[Major Nikon]

39. I'm not disputing any of that

But in this case I don't see any fault of the behavior of TSA. The airport is owned and operated by the city of San Jose, which receives federal funding and oversight from the Dept of Transportation, a completely separate department of government from TSA. The plane itself is supposed to be inspected by the airline before flight.

[Orrex]

4. Just plane crazy

[malaise]

6. That's a freaking DUzy

[pinboy3niner]

10. He had an abnormal attachment to aviation

Which escalated to his becoming an abnormal attachment to aviation.

[Major Nikon]

25. Beats running away with the circus

[pinboy3niner]

26. For runaways, it used to be the go-to place to flea

[Blue_Tires]

7. Why?

This isn't the type of thing done on a lark...More often than not the "landing gear stowaway" is someone is desperate and out of options trying to escape a violent or oppressive country...

EDIT: Out of the documented cases (including this one), landing gear stowaways are batting 24 for 100

http://www.nbcnews.com/business/travel/dead-wheel-well-stowaway-went-undiscovered-7-flights-f6C10287982

[LonePirate]

8. This is another example of the poor science education students are receiving in US schools

The kid obviously knew nothing about the environmental health risks he survived while he hitched that ride.

[malaise]

9. Maybe now he'll learn the odds of taking such a stupid risk

It does take some special kind of dumb to even attempt scaling an airport fence let alone stowing away in an aircraft wheel well.

[Blue_Tires]

11. well, he had a big falling out with his parents

so when you factor in the angst-y teen emotions, his mind wasn't in the right place anyway, even if he did know the science...(I don't know if the kid was being a moron or if he was escaping abuse)

http://news.yahoo.com/16-old-survives-wheel-well-maui-flight-041150318.html

[Orrex]

12. He initially hid in the engine compartment but was exhausted.

[malaise]

13. You're on a roll

[11 Bravo]

18. He also ruled out hiding beneath the ailerons ... he was unflappable.

[pinboy3niner]

20. DUzy!

[mn9driver]

14. Just the altitude should have killed him.

38000 feet is lethal, even for a fairly short time. Five hours is way outside any chance. There's more to this than is being reported.

[JI7]

16. is it impossible ? 0 percent chance he could have survived it ?

[mn9driver]

19. Yeah, pretty much zero survivability at that altitude

At that low pressure, his lungs would release, not absorb, oxygen. Every breath would lower the oxygen level of his blood.

[JI7]

21. there were other cases where the person died doing this

i wonder if he got on the plane some other way but because it would expose their lack of security check they are just claiming this happened.

[jeff47]

30. Actually, the odds of survival are around 20%.

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2003/12/do_jet_stowaways_ever_survive.html

(Article is from 2003, so stats are probably slightly different today)

Few hopeful refugees attempt wheel-well arrivals every year. In 2000, for example, the FAA counted 13 such stowaways, three of whom survived. In 2001, six tried to enter the United States in such a fashion, with no survivors. In 2002, five perished and one survived. (The wheel-well survival rate since 1947 is 20.3 percent.) The death estimates may be low, as some bodies may have tumbled out into water or remote areas, never to be recovered.

[mn9driver]

33. The ones that survived never got to 38000 feet.

Their aircraft happened to stay lower for other reasons. I don't recall anyone ever surviving at that altitude. If it really happened as described, then something isn't being reported. 38000 feet for 5 hours pretty much equals certain death.

[malaise]

22. They said he was unconscious for most of hte trip as in hibernating

Sounds strange but the airpost has video of him scaling the wall and heading for the aircraft

[johnp3907]

15. I remember seeing this on Hill Street Blues.

A disgraced coroner talked about his past moment of glory when he figured out how a man froze to death on a warm day. He'd fallen out of the wheel well of the plane he'd stowed away on.

[Rex]

23. So woo saved his life?

Not seeing any other explanation that doesn't end up with him dead.

[pinboy3niner]

28. No, Woo's in First Class

[Rex]

29. Woo's on first base?

The entire act in gif form! I bow down to your Internet powers!

[jeff47]

31. Odds of survival are about 20%.

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2003/12/do_jet_stowaways_ever_survive.html

No woo required. Just luck.

[Rex]

32. Kewl, someone upthread said it was impossible at that altitude.

I figured he must have been surrounded in a cocoon of woo.

[Major Nikon]

27. Amazing what some people will do for frequent flyer miles

[Blue_Tires]

34. related story:

Mystery of the man who fell to earth

http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-22847065