The Reading / Listening - Airplane Stowaway - Level 2

A woman was found hiding on a Delta Air Lines airplane from New York to Paris. She was a stowaway – a person who gets on a plane without paying. The woman had a Russian passport. She was about 60 years old. She secretly got onto the plane. No airport staff saw her. She got past many security checks and then boarded the plane. She had no boarding pass. Police say she hid in the plane's toilets during the seven-hour flight. She was found after a flight attendant noticed the woman was making many trips to different toilets on the airplane.

The woman is now in a Paris police station. Airline officials tried to fly her back to New York. However, she caused trouble while the plane was on the runway waiting to take off. A man who sat near her spoke to CNN. He said the woman looked worried. She kept saying: "I do not want to go back to the USA. Only a judge can make me go back." Investigators are now looking into how she got on the plane. A Delta spokesperson said nothing was more important than safety and security. He said the airline would work hard to find out what happened.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Airplane Stowaway - Level 0 Airplane Stowaway - Level 1   or  Airplane Stowaway - Level 3

Sources
  • https://edition.cnn.com/2024/11/30/us/delta-stowaway-passenger-return-flight/index.html
  • https://www.cbsnews.com/news/stowaway-who-flew-new-york-to-paris-creates-disturbance-return-flight-to-u-s/
  • https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/airline-news/2024/11/28/delta-airlines-tsa-stowaway-nyc-paris-flight/76639097007/


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. A woman was found
  2. She was a
  3. a person who gets on a plane
  4. She secretly
  5. She got past many security
  6. She had no boarding
  7. during the seven-hour
  8. a flight
  1. pass
  2. without paying
  3. got onto the plane
  4. attendant
  5. stowaway
  6. flight
  7. checks
  8. hiding

Paragraph 2

  1. Airline officials tried
  2. she caused
  3. the plane was on the runway
  4. A man who sat
  5. He said the woman looked
  6. Only a judge can
  7. Investigators are now looking
  8. safety
  1. waiting to take off
  2. worried
  3. trouble
  4. into how
  5. to fly her back
  6. and security
  7. near her
  8. make me go back

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

A woman was (1) ___________________ a Delta Air Lines airplane from New York to Paris. She was a stowaway - a person who gets on a (2) ___________________. The woman had a Russian passport. She was about 60 years old. She (3) ___________________ the plane. No airport staff saw her. She got past many security checks and then (4) ___________________. She had no boarding pass. Police say she hid in the plane's toilets during the (5) ___________________. She was found after a flight attendant noticed the woman was (6) ___________________ to different toilets on the airplane.

The woman is now in a Paris police station. (7) ___________________ to fly her back to New York. However, she caused trouble while the plane was (8) ___________________ waiting to take off. A man (9) ___________________ her spoke to CNN. He said the woman looked worried. She kept saying: "I do not want to go back to the USA. Only (10) ___________________ make me go back." Investigators are now (11) ___________________ she got on the plane. A Delta spokesperson said nothing was more important than safety and security. He said the airline would (12) ___________________ find out what happened.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

AwomanwasfoundhidingonaDeltaAirLinesairplanefromNewYorktoP
aris.Shewasastowaway-apersonwhogetsonaplanewithoutpaying.T
hewomanhadaRussianpassport.Shewasabout60yearsold.Shesecret
lygotontotheplane.Noairportstaffsawher.Shegotpastmanysecurityc
hecksandthenboardedtheplane.Shehadnoboardingpass.Policesays
hehidintheplane'stoiletsduringtheseven-hourflight.Shewasfoundaf
teraflightattendantnoticedthewomanwasmakingmanytripstodiffere
nttoiletsontheairplane.ThewomanisnowinaParispolicestation.Airlin
eofficialstriedtoflyherbacktoNewYork.However,shecausedtroublew
hiletheplanewasontherunwaywaitingtotakeoff.Amanwhosatnearhe
rspoketoCNN.Hesaidthewomanlookedworried.Shekeptsaying:"Ido
notwanttogobacktotheUSA.Onlyajudgecanmakemegoback."Investi
gatorsarenowlookingintohowshegotontheplane.ADeltaspokesperso
nsaidnothingwasmoreimportantthansafetyandsecurity.Hesaidtheai
rlinewouldworkhardtofindoutwhathappened.

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

Help Support This Web Site

  • Please consider helping Breaking News English.com

Sean Banville's Book

Thank You