Gatwick deaths investigated

Flight path: Reports say man may have fallen from a plane

Police are investigating the deaths of two men who are thought to have fallen from airliners flying near Gatwick Airport.

A body was found in a field on the Sussex-Surrey border on Christmas Eve.

On Christmas Day a man was seen to fall from a British Airways flight heading for Mexico at about 0915GMT.

The investigations are ongoing

Mike Ingle
Gatwick duty manager

Mike Ingle, duty manager at Gatwick, said of the most recent death: "We have no idea how he could have got there. The police are on the site and the investigations are ongoing."

The first body, that of a young man, was found in a field in farmland.

He is believed to have been aged between 18 and 20 and his body was found in the field in the grounds of Broadstone Farm, near Rudgwick, on the West Sussex-Surrey border, at 1730 GMT on Christmas Eve.

Reports say he was found under the flightpaths to Gatwick and Heathrow airports after apparently falling from an aircraft.

Surrey Police said the discovery was not being treated as suspicious and have issued an appeal for information about the man, who has not yet been identified.

The man was white, 5ft 8ins tall and had short black hair and a tanned complexion.

Appeal for witnesses

He wore a red and white sports top with the words Bozz Sports written across it, blue tracksuit trousers with red slashes and buttons down the sides and white Fila trainers.

Police refused to reveal how he died or how his body was discovered.

A force spokeswoman said: "Any witnesses who saw anyone in that field in the last couple of days acting suspiciously, or who recognises the description of the young man as a friend or relative who may be missing, should contact Surrey Police."

The field is bordered by two lanes and two roads.

It is not yet known how long the body had been there before it was discovered.

Anyone with information about the death is asked to contact Surrey Police on 01737 765 040.