Body found in landing gear of Turkish Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Istanbul

The body of a dead man was found in the landing gear of a Turkish Airlines flight that had flown from Amsterdam to Istanbul on Thursday night. The body was discovered when the airplane was later brought to an area at Istanbul Airport for maintenance.

Investigators said it was likely the victim was a stowaway passenger, but they have not ruled out the possibility that he was an airport worker. Local media outlets said investigators suspect the victim has a background from a region of Africa, and estimated he was between 30 and 40 years of age. An autopsy was expected to take place later on Friday as investigators attempt to identify the body.

The Airbus A330, with tail registration TC-JOA, flies multiple flights daily. It was not immediately clear when the man entered the aircraft. The airplane departed from Schiphol Airport just after 7 p.m. using flight number TK 1954, and landed in Istanbul just before 11:10 p.m. local time.

The Turkish Airlines aircraft made 15 different journeys just since the beginning of this week. Prior to the flight from Amsterdam on Thursday evening, the plane departed roundtrips between Istanbul and Bucharest, Dushanbe, Astana, and Paris.

It stopped in Luanda, Angola, and Libreville, the capital of Gabon at the start of the week.

Investigators initially focused their attention on security camera footage of the Airbus at the various moments it was on the ground in Istanbul over the past few days.