The stowaway, a woman aged between 55 and 60 who is both a U.S. green card and a Russian passport holder, successfully passed through a physical security screening checkpoint by the U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) on her way to the departure gate.

It remains unclear how the person managed to bypass security at JFK Airport and board the Delta Air Lines flight to Paris.

The woman boarded Delta Flight No. 264 from John F. Kennedy International Airport to Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, CBS News learned. She was discovered while the plane was in midair and was taken into custody in Paris.