Stowaways clung to to U.S. Air Force plane moments before falling to their death after Afghanistan fell to Taliban war lords today.

The desperate Afghans climbed onto the flap above the landing wheels of the Boeing C-17 Globemaster III as it taxied onto the runway at the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul.

An Apache helicopter cleared hundreds of people from the runway so the aircraft could take-off but stowaways managed to stay on the outside.

Three stowaways who managed to cling to the plane died when they fell during its ascent into the sky and the wheels retracted while five others were killed amid frantic scenes on August 16 morning.

Afghan air space has since been closed, with commercial flights from Kabul being cancelled. The Afghanistan Civil Aviation Authority has advised transit aircraft to take longer alternative routes instead.

Taliban forces seized Kabul on August 16, settling into the presidential palace after Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled the country.

A Taliban spokesman said the war was ‘over’ and that the militants have accomplished their objective or retaking the Middle East country following two decades of western occupation started by former leaders George Bush and Tony Blair.

Mohammad Naeem said: ‘We have reached what we were seeking, which is the freedom of our country and the independence of our people. We will not allow anyone to use our lands to target anyone, and we do not want to harm others.’