Afghan Teen Faizal Survives Wheel‑Well Flight

On Sept. 21 a 13-year-old Afghan boy identified by officials as Faizal, a resident of Kunduz, was found alive after hiding in the rear/central landing gear of Kam Air flight RQ-4401 from Kabul to New Delhi. He was spotted barefoot and dusty with blistered feet walking on the apron at Indira Gandhi International Airport around 11:10 a.m.; airline staff detained him and handed him to the Central Industrial Security Force. Security and engineering teams recovered a small red audio/Bluetooth speaker from the wheel-well, carried out anti-sabotage and safety checks and declared the aircraft safe. Officials say he slipped into Kabul airport by tailgating passengers during breaks and told investigators he either acted out of curiosity or intended to reach Iran after having been deported from there; sources also say he had lost his father and faced neglect at home. His identity was verified with Afghan officials and he was repatriated later that day on Kam Air’s return flight RQ-4402; he remains under investigation in Afghanistan. The discovery prompted heightened scrutiny of airport security and renewed attention to the humanitarian pressures driving vulnerable migrants to attempt such lethal journeys.