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A passenger flight of JAC, a subsidiary of Japan Airlines, was canceled due to the presence of an unidentified small animal in the cockpit. A juvenile Japanese snake was later found under the cabin’s carpet. Fortunately, no major accident occurred.
Japan One of the airline’s passenger planes was canceled yesterday after a “small animal-like object” was found in the cockpit and later went missing. The airline announced today that a baby snake was found under the plane’s cabin carpet.
The Asahi Shimbun reported that the flight was operated by Japan Air Commuter (JAC), a subsidiary of Japan Airlines (JAL), and was a small propeller aircraft manufactured by ATR Corporation.
JAC said that before passengers boarded the plane yesterday afternoon, the pilot noticed an unidentified object moving on the legs of the driver’s seat, which appeared to be smaller than a dog or cat. Although a search was immediately launched, the person was not found. Ultimately it was decided to cancel the flight due to safety concerns. Then, the airline continued its search for this “little animal”.
JAC said the snake was discovered by maintenance workers when they lifted the carpet around 1 pm today. After sending the photo to a reptile expert for identification, he confirmed that it was a young Japanese elaphe, with a brown body color and about 40 centimeters in length.
JAC said the snake has been handed over to pest control companies for disposal. The plane will be returned to flight only after confirming whether there is any damage to the passenger plane.
Aviation critic Hiroshi Sugi is a former Japan Airlines captain. He said that even though he has more than 40 years of flying experience, “I have never heard of a case of a snake getting into the cockpit or cabin.” He was quite surprised by this.
He said in this regard, ‘If the snake is poisonous and passengers board the plane without knowing, then they may suffer harm.’ He confirmed the JAC’s decision at the time, saying, “The most important thing is to find the snake quickly. In terms of the outcome, this is the right decision.” He also called on the airline industry to envision various possible scenarios in advance.
Summary FAQ
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The pilot found an unidentified object that looked like a small animal near the legs of the driver’s seat. Although he searched immediately, he could not find it. Based on security reasons, they decided to cancel the flight and continue to determine the object’s whereabouts.
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When maintenance staff lifted the cabin’s carpet the next afternoon, they found a baby snake, which was sent to a reptile expert for identification and confirmed to be a brown snake about 40 centimeters long.
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Former Japan Airlines Captain Hiroshi Sugi believes that although it is very rare for a snake to enter the cabin, but if it is a poisonous snake and the passengers are not aware of it, they may be harmed, so it is right and necessary to find the snake immediately.
