An EgyptAir flight was forced to divert yesterday after a passenger was bitten by a snake he had smuggled on board.
The pilots decided to perform an emergency landing at a nearby airport after hearing the terrifying screams of the victim.
Al Ahram website reports that the passenger was from Jordan and had secretly stashed the animal in his hand luggage.
The flight, bound for Kuwait, landed at the airport of Hurgada, some 300 miles south of the Egyptian capital Cairo.
Once on the ground, the injured passenger was taken to hospital and the snake was confiscated by airport authorities. The flight then continued on its journey to Kuwait without further incident.
It comes two weeks after a stowaway scorpion caused panic on an aeroplane when it stung a passenger during a trans-Atlantic flight.
The crafty critter had snuck on board the Airbus 340 for the Iberia flight from Costa Rica's capital city of San Jose to Barajas airport in Madrid, Spain, on November 22.
The pilot, fearing the sting could be deadly, ordered Spanish air traffic controllers to call doctors so she could treated as soon as they landed.
Upon arriving in Madrid, the medics confirmed the arachnid sting on the Swiss passenger's left arm and rushed her to the Ramón y Cajal Hospital.
The remaining passengers had their belongings searched, to check for any other animals, and the aeroplane was then sealed off and suspended from duty for 24 hours so it could be fumigated.
The injured woman was treated for the sting, and allowed to continue her journey to Zurich some 36 hours later.
She had been with a group of five friends. Four of them returned to Switzerland after landing in Madrid and one of her companions stayed with her in hospital.
The aircraft was re-admitted into the fleet the next day for a flight to Mexico.
The pilots decided to perform an emergency landing at a nearby airport after hearing the terrifying screams of the victim.
Al Ahram website reports that the passenger was from Jordan and had secretly stashed the animal in his hand luggage.
Diversion: An EgyptAir flight was forced to make
an emergency landing yesterday after a passenger was bitten by a snake
he reportedly smuggled onboard
Once on the ground, the injured passenger was taken to hospital and the snake was confiscated by airport authorities. The flight then continued on its journey to Kuwait without further incident.
It comes two weeks after a stowaway scorpion caused panic on an aeroplane when it stung a passenger during a trans-Atlantic flight.
The crafty critter had snuck on board the Airbus 340 for the Iberia flight from Costa Rica's capital city of San Jose to Barajas airport in Madrid, Spain, on November 22.
The pilot, fearing the sting could be deadly, ordered Spanish air traffic controllers to call doctors so she could treated as soon as they landed.
Upon arriving in Madrid, the medics confirmed the arachnid sting on the Swiss passenger's left arm and rushed her to the Ramón y Cajal Hospital.
The plane safely landed at Hurghada airport, 300 miles south of Cairo, before the passenger was taken to hospital
The injured woman was treated for the sting, and allowed to continue her journey to Zurich some 36 hours later.
She had been with a group of five friends. Four of them returned to Switzerland after landing in Madrid and one of her companions stayed with her in hospital.
The aircraft was re-admitted into the fleet the next day for a flight to Mexico.
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