Key Points:
A 13-year-old Afghan boy from Kunduz survived a 90-minute Kabul–Delhi flight hidden inside the plane’s landing gear.
He slipped past Kabul airport security and later admitted his decision was driven by curiosity.
The incident highlights serious airport security lapses and echoes past cases, most of which end in tragedy rather than survival.
The airline staff expected another routine arrival when a Kam Air flight from Kabul landed at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport on Sunday, 21st September 2025. Instead, they were shocked to discover a 13-year-old boy who had made the dangerous journey by hiding in the plane’s landing gear compartment. The boy, from Kunduz in Afghanistan, survived the impossible feat, enduring a freezing and unpressurised journey of more than 90 minutes
The matter was then reported to the airport’s security control room. When questioned in Delhi, the 13-year-old admitted that his decision had been driven by sheer curiosity. He had planned on travelling to Iran by attempting this stunt but ended up on the wrong flight due to confusion. He could not have fully understood the risks of his actions at the tender age of 13. The dangers included lack of oxygen, freezing temperatures and the possibility of falling or being crushed to death. He had no idea what lay ahead, making his journey a blend of innocence, naivety and a restless urge to try something different.
As per security officials, the boy entered Kabul airport and quietly followed a group of passengers, managing to slip through the security checks without drawing suspicion. He then arrived at the restricted airside zone which should have been inaccessible without clearance. Later, he saw the Kam Air flight which was getting ready to take off and crawled into the wheel well, the rear central landing gear compartment. He even carried a red audio speaker which was then found during a thorough inspection of the flight.
The wheel well of an aircraft is a cold, unpressurised space where temperatures can drop to minus 40 or 50 degrees Celsius, and oxygen levels fall so low that most people lose consciousness within minutes at cruising altitude. It is extremely rare to survive in such conditions.
The boy survived against all odds, though he was disoriented when the plane landed in Delhi. He was handed over to the Central Industrial Security Force for further questioning. The aircraft was cleared after extensive inspections, and the boy was put on the same flight back to Afghanistan later that afternoon, around 12:30 pm.
There have been earlier cases of people attempting to hide in aircraft wheel wells, but survival is extremely rare. In 2024, two bodies were found in the landing gear of a JetBlue flight from the Dominican Republic to Florida. In another case, an Algerian youth was left in critical condition due to hypothermia after sneaking into the landing gear of a flight from Oran to Paris. A Guatemalan man also survived a flight to Miami after hiding for several hours in the wheel well.
The incident raises two important questions. The first is the airport security breach at Kabul airport, which already struggles with fragile infrastructure and limited resources. The second is the recklessness of the child in taking such a dangerous step, one that could easily have led to his death. The case shows how the natural desires of a child often lack an understanding of the fatal outcomes of actions driven by curiosity and the urge to see beyond their own world. The boy returned home safely, but his experience serves as a reminder of the need to improve airport security and safeguards for vulnerable young people. [Rh/SY]
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