Authorities are conducting a death investigation at Charlotte Douglas International Airport after the body of a stowaway was found inside the landing gear of an American Airlines flight on Sept. 28.

The individual was discovered inside one of the main landing gear compartments while the maintenance crew was working on the aircraft, which had arrived from Europe, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department said in a news release. The person was pronounced dead on the scene by the police department's airport division officers.

CMPD's Homicide Unit Detectives and Crime Scene Search responded to the scene to investigate and collect physical evidence, along with assistance from Operations Command and MEDIC.

Police said the investigation is ongoing, and the identity of the individual has not been released as of Sept. 28. In a statement to USA TODAY, American Airlines said it is working with law enforcement on the investigation.

"CLT Airport is aware of the tragic discovery involving a deceased individual found in the landing gear of an American Airlines aircraft this morning," a spokesperson for the airport told USA TODAY in an email. "We are deeply saddened by this news and will support the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department’s investigation as needed."

Operations at the airport continue as normal, the airport added.

Sneaking into a plane's landing gear can be highly risky, health and aviation experts have previously told USA TODAY. These unpressurized parts of a plane lack oxygen and can reach temperatures well below freezing, sometimes to minus 80 degrees Fahrenheit.

Most stowaways result in fatalities, with the Federal Aviation Administration estimating more than 76% end in deaths.

In January, the bodies of two Dominican teenagers were found inside the landing gear of a JetBlue passenger plane in Florida's Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. Maintenance crews discovered them during a routine post-flight inspection of the plane after arriving from New York. It remains unclear how or when they got onto the plane.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Stowaway found dead inside landing gear of American Airlines flight, authorities say

Reporting by Kathleen Wong, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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