A passenger who fell from an elevated tram during a maintenance run at Orlando International Airport, Florida has died.

Airport authorities said that the tram, which is normally automated, was being run manually during a routine inspection in the early-morning hours. The tram transports airline passengers on tracks from the main terminal to four satellite terminals.

The tram was carrying the man and an employee of the airport contractor, Bombardier Transportation, who operates the tram system. He was carrying the invited man ride along from the main terminal to the satellite terminal with gates 1 through 29.

Two trams serve each satellite terminal and the second one serving gates 1 through 29 in Airside 1 were operating normally.

The passenger was at the controls when the tram made a sudden stop. The passenger was allowed to be at the controls when he suddenly pulled his hand away.

This caused the tram, moving at about 5 mph at the time to stop suddenly. This ejected him through the windshield, causing him to fall to the ground more than a dozen feet below. Airport officials said that the unidentified man died after being taken to a hospital Friday.

Orlando International Airport Executive Director Phil Brown said, "When you take your hand off of it, it's got a kill switch. He took his hand off. That's when it stopped, and he was propelled out of the vehicle".

Even through the involved tram is out of service, passenger service hasn't been interrupted. The accident is being investigated by several agencies, including the National Transportation Safety Board and OSHA.