Stowaway flew aboard Delta flight from New York to Paris
By Lex Harvey and Amanda Jackson, CNN
(CNN) — A stowaway flew aboard a Delta Air Lines flight from New York to Paris Tuesday evening amid the Thanksgiving travel surge, authorities said.
The stowaway was on Delta flight 264 from New York’s JFK International Airport to Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, the airline confirmed to CNN.
The individual, who did not have a boarding pass, completed security screening and bypassed two identity verification and boarding status stations to board the aircraft, according to a spokesperson for the US Transportation Security Administration (TSA). The person was not carrying any prohibited items.
It’s unclear how the person bypassed the boarding stations. Delta declined to provide additional details as the investigation continued.
Passengers weren’t alerted to the stowaway until the plane landed in Paris, said Rob Jackson, who was a passenger on the Delta flight.
“I didn’t actually see the person in question,” Jackson told CNN.
“The first announcement to passengers that there was a problem was when we parked at the gate and they instructed us all to remain seated because French police were going to board the aircraft to deal with ‘a serious security issue,’” he said.
In a video recorded by Jackson, the captain can be heard saying, “Folks, this is the captain, we are just waiting for the police to come on board. They may be here now and they directed us to keep everyone on the airplane until we sort out the extra passenger that’s on the plane.”
Jackson said the flight was completely full and there appeared to be no extra seats for the stowaway.
“Nothing is of greater importance than matters of safety and security,” a Delta spokesperson said in a statement. “That’s why Delta is conducting an exhaustive investigation of what may have occurred and will work collaboratively with other aviation stakeholders and law enforcement to that end.”
CNN has reached out to the FBI and Charles de Gaulle Airport.
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