A shocking tragedy rocked the Bergamo Orio al Serio airport on Tuesday morning. A 35-year-old man lost his life in dramatic circumstances, sucked into the engine of a Volotea airline Airbus A319 plane that was preparing to take off for a flight to Spain.
According to initial investigations, the victim was neither a passenger nor a member of the airport staff. He allegedly had drug addiction problems, who had managed to get through security and break into the airport’s operational area, apparently with the intention of taking his own life.
Witnesses described seeing the man, pursued by some stewards and security officers, allegedly heading toward the aircraft’s right engine. He then went around the plane, coming too close to the left engine, which killed him Passengers, already boarding, helplessly witnessed the scene. “We were going up the stairs,” recounted one of them, “and we saw everything.”
Operations inside the airport were immediately suspended, as firefighters, airport police, and emergency personnel responded to the scene. The flight was canceled while authorities launched an investigation to determine how it was possible for the man to get all the way to the runway, evading security measures in a highly guarded area.
Fabrizio S. Bovi, a pilot and aviation expert, explained the extreme danger of turbofan engines, especially during the ignition and takeoff phases. “A running engine can exert a very powerful suction effect: even at a distance of one meter the air can travel over 150 km/h. Under high operating conditions, it can suck in objects as far as ten meters away.”
“The front fan,” Bovi added, “is capable of sucking in even a container truck, so you can imagine what might happen to a person approaching it on purpose, or in an attempt to escape.”
The Milan-Bergamo airport was closed from 10:20 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. to allow for safety operations and surveys by authorities. SACBO, the airport’s management company, condoled the incident and confirmed that investigations by law enforcement agencies are underway.
The dramatic episode raises urgent questions about the level of surveillance and security protocols at Italian airports.
