Man froze to death after being found hidden in undercarriage of TUI plane at Gatwick, inquest told

A MAN was found frozen to death inside the undercarriage of a TUI plane at Gatwick, an inquest has heard.

Police launched a probe following the horrific discovery on December 7 last year.

An inquest into his death heard how the man, who has not been identified, was found by plane engineers.

He was pronounced dead at the airport with a post mortem confirming he died from hypothermia.

The hold temperature onboard a long haul flight to the UK can drop to -60C.

The TUI plane had travelled from the Gambian capital of Banjul to London Gatwick.

No date of birth or name has been established for the man.

Sussex Police are working with the Gambian authorities to establish his identity, the hearing was told.

A full inquest was scheduled for May 24 in Chichester.

Coroner Joanne Andrews said: “I am satisfied the death was unnatural and there will be an inquest.”

After the body was discovered, Gambian government spokesman, Ebrima G. Sankareh, said: “According to the information, the deceased black male was found within the wheel bay of the aircraft without identification documents to establish his name, age, nationality or travel itinerary.

“It is, therefore, not clear at this stage, who he is.” 

The tragedy is not the first case of stowaways being discovered on planes.

In January last year, Dutch police discovered a man alive in the landing gear of a jumbo jet after surviving the 11-hour flight from South Africa to Amsterdam.

In a similar case in 2021, a shocking video emerged of a man being found beneath the fuselage of a flight from Guatemala to Miami.