A 13-year-old boy who managed to sneak onto an El Al flight to New York last October without a ticket or passport, was spotted again last night (Thursday) at Ben Gurion Airport. The boy, who sneaked onto the El Al flight from Israel to New York last October without a ticket or identification documents, was located again last night (Thursday) at Ben Gurion Airport - this time before entering the security screening areas.
The boy was seen in one of the terminal areas, outside the regular passenger route. A shift deputy commander at the airport noticed suspicious behavior from the boy and approached to check his identity.
During questioning, his identity was revealed - and it was confirmed that he had previously sneaked onto the flight in October without authorization.
In response to this incident, the Israel Airports Authority announced a change in the screening procedures at Ben Gurion Airport following a series of similar unusual cases.
According to the authority's announcement, from now on, the boarding pass will be checked in the earlier stages of the security process, rather than only close to the boarding gate.
This decision was made following another serious incident that occurred this week, in which an 18-year-old Israeli managed to board an Austrian Airlines flight from Israel to Vienna without a ticket. It was only after landing in Austria that it was discovered that he did not have a ticket, and he was sent back to Israel.
The Israel Airports Authority stated, "A preliminary investigation of the incident revealed that the passenger underwent security screening but did not complete the border control procedure."
Additionally, an immediate check was conducted with the Population and Immigration Authority and the airline, and the circumstances of the event are still being investigated.