A stowaway said to be high on drugs was found hiding in the landing gear of a passenger jet moments before it was due to take off.

The boy – who looks to be around 16 years old – was discovered sitting in the undercarriage well of the plane as it was about to take off from Mexico City.

Local media report that the pilot and co-pilot of Volaris flight 876 at Mexico City International Airport saw the teen jumping onto the wheel as they were taxiing on the runway.

They instantly aborted the take-off and called in airport security,

Inside the Airbus A320’s landing gear, they found a teen identified only as Cesar in local media, believed to be a migrant desperate to get to the US.

The 3rd September flight had been due to land at Tijuana, which shares a border with San Diego, California.

Video footage shows the confused-looking stowaway being offered a can of drink before he is helped down onto the runway to be led off by security staff.

Earlier video footage shows the teen after he had apparently climbed a perimeter fence jogging over to the plane and climbing into the wheel well.

According to local media, he was likely under the influence of a psychotropic substance. It is not clear if he received medical attention.

Volaris said in a statement: “According to the report from the aircraft’s captain, during the taxiing process – practically at the runway’s threshold – he and the co-pilot observed a person running and attempting to climb onto the main landing gear of the aircraft, which is the part where the wheels are located under the fuselage of the aircraft.

“Immediately, the captain took the necessary measures to ensure the safety of all passengers and crew on board.”

Airport officials said the boy was handed over to police for putting his and those on the plane’s lives in danger.

They said in a statement: “Thanks to the timely response of the mentioned authorities and the airline itself, a more serious incident was prevented.”

Wheel-well stowaways risk falling to their death during take-off and landing, being crushed to death when the landing gear retracts, hypothermia and hypoxia at high altitude, and hearing damage from prolonged exposure to high noise levels.