A dead stowaway was on Monday discovered in the wheel well of a KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Boeing 777.
The aircraft (registered PH-BQM) flew from Nigeria’s commercial hub, Lagos, according to Belgium’s Aviation24.
It is still unknown how the undocumented passenger found his way into the aircraft but an inquiry has commenced.
The man might have died from hypothermia, a medical emergency that occurs when the body loses excess heat.
The Royal Dutch Marechaussee noted that stowaways survive sometimes but do not in most cases.
“Most of the time it goes wrong given the sharp drop in temperature,” a spokesperson said.
“On longer flights, temperatures can go down to minus fifty degrees, impossible to survive.”
The Royal Marechaussee is the national force of the Netherlands, performing military and civilian police duties.