A homeless teenager who hid in the landing gear of a passenger plane survived a 700km flight across south-western China, but his companion fell and probably died, state media reported on Friday.
The 14-year-old boy, who flew from Yunnan province’s capital city, Kunming, to Chongqing in the hour-long flight early on Thursday, was found by airport porters after the plane landed, the Beijing Youth Daily reported.
But his 12-year-old friend, who earlier climbed into the landing gear with him, fell from the aircraft as it took off, it said.
”His companion fell off the plane and he was frightened. He then held tightly on to the landing-gear rod, didn’t move and ended up at the destination,” the paper said, quoting an airport employee.
”The boy miraculously survived … but was in a state of shock after being deprived of oxygen and exposed to cold air,” it said. — Sapa-AFP