AN airport trespasser who was sucked into a plane engine and killed at Milan airport reportedly managed to reach the aircraft in a matter of seconds.
The 35-year-old Italian is understood to have bypassed multiple layers of security before reaching a moving plane at Milan Bergamo Airport.
bergamonews.itA man was reportedly killed at Milano Bergamo Airport after being sucked into the jet engine[/caption]
ilfattoquotidiano.ITPassengers look out into the tarmac as first responders surround the aircraft[/caption]
ReutersFlight operations were temporarily suspended on Tuesday morning[/caption]
Tuesday’s horror incident has raised questions about how the man was able to reach the tarmac at one of Italy’s busiest airports.
He reportedly entered the airport the wrong way by car, abandoned the vehicle near the terminal, and then forced his way through a ground-level security door in a matter of seconds – all while being chased by police.
The door leads directly from the arrivals hall to the aircraft parking area — a supposedly high-security zone.
The man allegedly gained access to the terminal’s ground floor arrivals area, opened a door meant only for authorized personnel, and entered the operational airside zone, reported Il Fatto Quotidiano.
He was reportedly spotted by a police officer and chased, but still managed to sprint across the tarmac and reach a Volotea Airbus A319 just as it was performing its pushback maneuver.
The aircraft, preparing to depart for Asturias, Spain, was said to be already on the move when the man got close and was fatally sucked into the engine.
A witness who was boarding a nearby plane told local media: “At first he threw himself against the casings – the protections of the right engine of the plane.
“Then he went around and either threw himself or was sucked into the propeller of the left engine.
“We were trying to go up the stairs and we saw everything.”
The trespasser, who was neither a passenger or an airport employee, had no association with the airline, according to Volotea.
Sources familiar with airport operations said the man’s path through restricted areas was both rapid and shocking, La Voce del Patriota reported.
The Italian outlet added that the episode has since raised questions about the security measures adopted at Bergamo Airport, also known as Orio al Serio.
Authorities are now facing scrutiny over how the man was able to breach such a sensitive area so quickly — especially at one of Italy’s busiest travel hubs, known for its tight protocols.
Italy’s third busiest airport, Orio al Serio, is equipped with layers of checks, barriers, and surveillance.
Yet the man allegedly bypassed them all, on foot, in broad daylight, and under pursuit.
Aviation authorities and police are now under pressure to explain how someone with no clearance managed to access the runway so quickly — and why intervention came too late.
According to La voce del Patriota, investigators are working on the possibility that the man’s actions were deliberate and premeditated.
“The most accredited hypothesis, although still under consideration, is that of a voluntary act, a premeditated suicide,” sources told the Italian outlet.
@AirNavRadar / XFootage from the runway appears to show people surrounding a Volotea aircraft around the time of the accident[/caption]
ilfattoquotidiano.ITThe trespasser was neither a passenger nor an airport employee, local media reported[/caption]
GettyThe incident caused major disruption to one of Italy’s biggest airports[/caption]
All flight operations at Orio al Serio were suspended from 10.20am to 12pm – with numerous flights cancelled, delayed and diverted.
By 11.50am local time, a total of nine flights had already been diverted – one to Bologna, two to Verona, and six rerouted to Milan Malpensa.
Ryanair flights departing for Crotone, Katowice, Prague, Zadar, Tirana, Kos, Malta, Naples, Porto, Alghero, Dusseldorf (Eurowings) were among the many cancellations, reports Milano Today.
Air traffic resumed at 12pm local time, according to airport operator SACBO.
Milano Bergamo is ranked as Italy’s third busiest airport, having handled as many as 17.4 million passengers last year.
A significant portion of its traffic is driven by budget airline Ryanair.
Together with Milan Linate and Milan Malpensa, it is a part of the Milan airport system, which is the biggest in Italy in terms of passenger volume.