A man without documents who was being sent back to the airport of origin jumped off the aircraft and ran away from the police before behind apprehended in a village nearby, Italian media report.

The incident happened on Monday evening at the Malpensa airport of Milan, leading authorities to temporarily close the airport for both incoming and outgoing flights until the man was caught.

The man, an Egyptian, had arrived in Milan on Sunday from Dakar and was to proceed to Cairo. But he did not have the necessary documents to continue with his journey and Italian authorities decided to send him back to Dakar.

The first available flight back was Monday. The man was escorted to the aircraft by police officers. He boarded the plane and walked to the back of the aircraft, jumping off onto the runway as one of the hostess was about to close the back door.

By the time the alarm was raised the man had made it to the perimeter of the airfield. Incoming flights were diverted and outgoing ones were delayed until the man was eventually caught in a village close to the airport.

Flight operations could then resume, media reported.