(NEWARK, NEW JERSEY) — Italian authorities took Svetlana “the stowaway” Dali into custody on Thursday after airline staff in Milan discovered she allegedly flew from Newark to Italy without a ticket on United Airlines Flight 19, U.S. officials and the carrier said.
Dali, a Russian national and U.S. permanent resident previously convicted of stowing away on a flight to Paris, allegedly boarded the long-haul international service from Newark Liberty International Airport to Milan on Wednesday night and stayed aboard until after landing.
United Airlines said: “Safety and security are our highest priorities. We are investigating this incident and working with the appropriate authorities.”
The Boeing 777-200, carrying 364 passengers, departed Newark at 5:51 p.m. ET and landed in Milan at 7:09 a.m. Thursday, where staff discovered her lack of a boarding pass, authorities said.
Investigators are focusing on the gate and boarding process at Gate C74, where Dali allegedly bypassed airline employees before hiding on the aircraft, evading detection for over seven hours until landing.
Emily Molinari, a spokesperson for the FBI Newark field office, confirmed the bureau was aware of the alleged stowaway and is collaborating with Port Authority and TSA on the open investigation.
The allegation is drawing attention because it suggests a breakdown in layered safeguards that typically separate ticketed passengers from restricted areas on international flights, including identity checks, boarding pass scans at the gate, and controlled access points around secure areas.
Officials have not detailed how Dali moved through the airport beyond the allegation that she bypassed airline employees in the gate area, and authorities have not described where she stayed during the flight besides saying she hid.
Airline and airport security processes generally involve multiple handoffs, with screening before entry to restricted zones and additional checks at boarding, but investigators have not said which step failed in this case.
The inquiry now spans the airline, federal investigators and airport security partners in the United States, along with Italian authorities who took custody after the post-arrival discovery.
Dali’s alleged flight to Milan follows a series of airport security breaches tied to her name across multiple U.S. airports in 2024 and 2025, including an incident that ended with a federal conviction.
In November 2024, authorities said she stowed away on Delta Air Lines Flight 264 from JFK Airport to Paris Charles de Gaulle by passing a crew security checkpoint without ID or boarding pass.
During that earlier incident, authorities said Dali hid in the bathroom and faked vomiting when questioned by crew.
A Brooklyn federal court convicted her, and a judge sentenced her to time served in July 2025, according to the account of the earlier case.
At that sentencing, Dali claimed through a Russian interpreter: “My actions were directed toward only one purpose: to save my life,” alleging U.S. military poisoning required overseas treatment.
After her release, authorities said she allegedly cut off her ankle monitor and attempted to cross into Canada via the Peace Bridge in Buffalo, New York.
Officials also tied Dali to earlier security incidents that preceded the JFK-to-Paris stowaway case, including an event two days before the Paris flight when authorities said she accessed a secure departures area at Bradley International Airport, Connecticut.
Earlier in 2024, authorities said U.S. Customs and Border Protection found her hiding in a bathroom in a secure area of Miami International Airport.
Authorities said a similar Miami incident occurred in February 2024, when she was discovered hiding in a bathroom in Miami’s international arrivals secure zone.
Those earlier incidents have become part of the backdrop for investigators now reviewing what happened at Newark, particularly because the latest allegation again involves a major airport, a restricted area near boarding, and an international departure.
Federal public defender Michael Schneider argued for her release after the Paris incident and framed her prior conduct as unlikely to repeat at scale, saying: “We do not believe she is a serious risk of flight. It’s not as if she can sneak on a flight every day.”
That argument is now colliding with the latest allegation, which federal authorities and United are investigating alongside airport security partners, while Italian authorities hold Dali after the Milan arrival.
Coordination after a post-arrival custody event on an international flight typically involves identity verification, interviews and information-sharing across agencies and borders, though officials have not described the specific steps taken in this case.
United has not described what triggered the post-landing discovery in Milan, but airline staff found Dali lacked a boarding pass after the flight arrived, authorities said.
The Newark-to-Milan route information, including the aircraft type, passenger count, departure and arrival times, and the gate where the alleged bypass occurred, has become central to the review as investigators map the timeline.
Authorities have not said whether Dali had any contact with passengers or crew during the Newark-to-Milan flight, beyond the allegation that she remained hidden for over seven hours and was not detected until after landing.
The case is raising broader questions for airlines and airports about how multiple layers of screening can still fail, and how quickly agencies across jurisdictions can coordinate when an alleged breach occurs on an international arrival.
Airlines and airports typically review CCTV, access logs, staffing and checkpoint procedures after a breach allegation, without presuming a single point of failure, and investigators have not announced conclusions about what happened at Newark.
For U.S. agencies, the case also puts a spotlight on how patterns across locations and dates in 2024 and 2025 can influence threat assessments and operational responses, especially when an alleged stowaway reaches a foreign destination before detection.
Dali’s latest alleged flight, if confirmed, would mark another instance in which a traveler without a ticket reached an aircraft through the gate area, underscoring why federal authorities, airport operators and carriers treat boarding controls as a last line of defense before departure.
Svetlana “the Stowaway” Dali Boards United Flight 19 at Gate C74
Authorities are investigating how Svetlana Dali allegedly boarded a United Airlines flight from Newark to Milan without a ticket. Dali, who has a prior federal conviction for a similar incident at JFK, successfully evaded detection for over seven hours. The breach has prompted a multi-agency review of gate security and boarding procedures after the aircraft arrived in Italy with an unauthorized passenger aboard.
