NEW YORK – A stowaway traveled from New York to Paris this week on a Delta Airlines flight after she made it through layers of security at JFK International Airport and snuck onto the plane without a boarding pass.
French police took the woman into custody Tuesday.
The Transportation Security Administration confirmed that the woman took advantage of the holiday madness.
“TSA can confirm that an individual without a boarding pass completed security screening (including on-person and bags) without any prohibited items,” an agency spokesperson told the New York Post. “The individual bypassed two identity verification and boarding status stations and boarded the aircraft.”
The woman was discovered mid-flight in a bathroom by a flight attendant, according to a passenger.
“I heard them saying, like, ‘We have a passenger who we think was hiding in the lavatory during takeoff. She does not have a seat. She does not have a boarding pass. And basically she’s a stowaway,’” passenger Rob Jackson said.
The woman was denied entry into Paris and will be returned to New York, the Post reported.
Delta said it is investigating the incident.
According to government statistics, 80 people over the last 12 months bypassed the travel document podium at TSA checkpoints, but most were stopped and arrested.