British police are investigating the death of a man whose body was found in the landing gear bay of an Air Arabia Maroc aircraft after it arrived at London Gatwick Airport from Tangier. The aircraft involved was an Airbus A320 operating flight 3O102 from Morocco to the United Kingdom on June 16, 2026.

According to information published by British media, emergency services were called at around 11:45 local time after the body was discovered in the lower section of the aircraft. Sussex Police confirmed that an investigation has been launched and that a report will be prepared for HM Coroner.

Air Arabia Maroc confirmed that the incident was identified upon the arrival of flight 3O102 from Tangier to Gatwick and that the relevant authorities were immediately notified. The airline said it remains in close coordination with the investigating authorities and expressed its condolences to everyone affected by the incident.

London Gatwick Airport also confirmed that its emergency services responded after an incident was identified following the aircraft’s arrival. The airport said its teams subsequently supported Sussex Police and the coroner.

The man’s identity has not yet been released, nor have the exact circumstances under which he entered the aircraft’s landing gear area been officially confirmed. Based on the information currently available, it is believed that this may have been an attempt to stow away on the aircraft before it departed from Tangier, although these details remain subject to investigation.

Attempts to travel by hiding in an aircraft’s landing gear bay are almost always extremely dangerous and frequently fatal. A person hiding there can be killed when the landing gear retracts, while during flight they are exposed to extremely low temperatures, oxygen deprivation and very harsh conditions at high altitude. Death may occur as a result of hypothermia, hypoxia, injuries or a fall from the landing gear bay during approach or landing.

A similar case was recorded at Gatwick in December 2022, when a man’s body was found in the landing gear of a TUI Airways aircraft that had arrived from Banjul, Gambia. A subsequent inquest in the United Kingdom found that the man died from hypothermia. That case, as well as the latest incident involving the Air Arabia Maroc aircraft, once again highlights how deadly attempts to hide in the landing gear bays of commercial aircraft can be, but also how often such cases are linked to the desperation of people willing to risk their lives in an attempt to reach Europe.