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2:45
(CNN) --
Authorities in the Netherlands discovered a stowaway hiding in the front wheel of a cargo plane as it landed at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport on Sunday morning.
The man had been in hiding for more than 11 hours since the plane left Johannesburg, South Africa, according to a spokesman for Schiphol airport and police.
Although the individual was not identified, authorities said he is believed to be between 16 and 35 years old.
"We learned that a person stowing away on a cargo plane was found on the airport's cargo apron this morning," Schiphol airport spokeswoman Willemeike Koster told CNN.
The Royal Netherlands Military Police is handling the situation, Koster said.
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Airport ground staff first spotted something that looked like a person and immediately alerted authorities.
Upon arrival at the scene, Dutch police and emergency services confirmed the man was alive but with a low body temperature, Royal Netherlands Military Police spokeswoman Joanne Helmonds said.
"We were surprised to find this man, but even more surprised that he was alive after the plane had flown over 10,000 [kilometres] in very, very cold temperatures," Royal Military Police spokeswoman Joanne Helmonds told CNN. .
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The man was resuscitated and stabilized at the airport, then transferred to an Amsterdam hospital, Helmonds added.
"When the man has recovered and is released from the hospital, he will then be processed at the Asylum Seeker Center (AZC), where his status will be determined if he is truly seeking asylum," Helmonds said.
The flight duration between Johannesburg and Amsterdam is around 11 hours on average, and if the flight had stopped in Kenya, the journey would have been several hours longer, according to the Royal Netherlands Military Police.
Cargolux, the Luxembourg cargo airline on which the stowaway was traveling, declined to comment on the news pending an investigation into the situation.
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