Russian authorities said Thursday that they were still trying to figure out how a stowaway in Siberia managed to climb into the engine of a passenger plane destined for Egypt.
"Prosecutors are establishing all the circumstances of the incident, including the motivation of the stowaway and how he entered the aircraft," a transportation official in the Siberian city of Kemerovo told the Interfax news agency.
While rare, stowaways have survived flights in the wheel wells of passenger jets, despite freezing temperatures and little oxygen at high altitudes. A stowaway inside an aircraft's engine, however, is practically unheard of.
The man, whose identity has not been disclosed, was discovered Saturday as staff inspected the Boeing aircraft before its departure from Kemerovo to Hurghada, Egypt, the report said.
"The man was behaving weirdly and could not explain his behavior. He was taken by ambulance from the airport to a hospital where he is still located," the transportation official told Interfax.
The plane was not damaged and flew to Egypt "immediately after the incident," the report said.
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