MAN FLIES FROM SAUDI ARABIA TO INDIA HIDING IN PLANE LOO

By P. Vijian

NEW DELHI, Dec 28 (Bernama) -- An Indian national who wanted to return to
his native village from Saudi Arabia found an easy and cheap way to travel home.
He locked himself up in the toilet of an Air India plane.

Habib Hussein, 26, from Moradabad district in the northern state of Uttar
Pradesh, employed as a ground handler at the Medina Airport, decided to return
to his homeland after six months as he was unhappy with his job, reported the
Sunday Times.

Last Friday, Habib, boarded the Airbus A330 to do maintenance work and
locked himself in the toilet for almost 45 minutes, until the plane took off.

Quoting eyewitness, the newspaper reported: "Habib walked out and sat on a
vacant seat but he easily stood out among the Haj pilgrims because he was still
in overalls."

The special Haj plane was carrying 273 passengers from Medina to Jaipur.


In Jaipur, Habib, who was a farmer once, confessed to police that he was not
paid regularly and his employer held his passport. So, he had little choice but
to sneak into the plane, said the Sunday Times.

Now, Habib's daring escape, a serious security breach, has created headache
for the airline and airport officials.

Investigations are being conducted to find out how the plane crew missed the
intruder.

Police plan to take action against Habib and the airline.

-- BERNAMA