US authorities seek to identify bodies found in JetBlue wheel well

Authorities in the United States have been searching for two bodies since a JetBlue plane’s wheel well arrived in Florida, in the state of Florida.

The bodies were found on Monday night during a routine post-flight inspection, according to the airline. The jet had arrived in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, from the John F Kennedy International Airport in New York City.

The identities of the individuals and the circumstances surrounding their access to the aircraft are still under investigation, according to a statement from JetBlue.

We are committed to working closely with the authorities to help them understand how this happened because this is a heartbreaking circumstance.

Paramedics declared both of the individuals dead at the scene, according to the Broward County Sheriff’s Office.

It said the department’s homicide and crime scene units are investigating. The bodies’ location was unknown at the time of their release, and it was unclear how long they had been traveling.

People frequently attempt to secretly board aircraft using wheel wells. However, hiding in the opening, where wheels are retracted after takeoff, often proves deadly.

In 89 cases of people stowing away in aircraft’s external compartments, including the wheel wells, an FAA report from 2011 looked into these areas. Just 18 survived, indicating an 80-percent fatality rate.

Deaths from engine heat, falling from the plane, and being crushed by the landing gear are among the causes. The extreme cold and lack of oxygen also cause death in people.

Still, there have been some high-profile instances of people surviving such journeys in recent years, including a 16-year-old runaway who survived a five-hour flight from California to Maui, Hawaii, while hiding in a wheel well in 2014.

A body was discovered in the wheel well of a plane in the US for the second time in less than a month during the incident on Monday.

A United Airlines plane made its way to Maui on December 24 after taking off in Chicago, Illinois, and a body was discovered inside the wheel well.