Posted on 04/06/2023 12:05:22 PM PDT by Red Badger
A private plane in South Africa made an emergency landing when pilot Rudolf Erasmus spotted a highly venomous cape cobra under his seat. Photo by blom3/Pixabay.com A private plane in South Africa made an emergency landing when pilot Rudolf Erasmus spotted a highly venomous cape cobra under his seat. Photo by blom3/Pixabay.com
April 6 (UPI) -- A South African pilot had to make an emergency landing when he found himself in a situation straight out of the movies -- a venomous snake was under his seat.
Pilot Rudolf Erasmus was flying a private plane carrying four passengers from Bloemfontein to Pretoria flight when he found himself in a situation reminiscent of the film Snakes on a Plane.
Erasmus said he initially thought the cold sensation he felt through his shirt was his water bottle leaking.
"As I turned to my left and looked down, I could see the head of the snake receding back underneath my seat," Erasmus told NPR. "At which point there was a moment of stunned silence, to be brutally honest."
Erasmus said it took him a few moments to register that he had just seen a highly venomous cape cobra.
The pilot quickly made arrangements for an emergency landing at the closest airport, in Welkom, and informed his passengers of the slithering stowaway.
"You could hear a needle drop and I think everyone froze for a moment or two," he told the BBC.
Unlike the 2006 film, the plane landed with no one being bitten by the cobra. The passengers and crew members disembarked safely.
Erasmus said the snake was still curled up under his chair when he disembarked, but the reptile had disappeared by the time a professional snake catcher arrived on the scene.
Workers at Worcester flying club, where the plane had originally departed, revealed they had earlier seen a snake slithering under the aircraft, but it vanished before they could grab it.
Poppy Khosa, South Africa's civil aviation commissioner, hailed Erasmus as a hero.
"Oh my goodness this could have been disastrous. Great airmanship indeed, which saved all lives on board. Such an amazing story and great handling of the situation by the pilot. Bravo to great airmanship," Khoza told News24.
That would be one of the very few times it would make sense to leave a perfectly good airplane while in flight.
My guess is his pre-flight checklist just got one item longer.
I hate when that happens.
Aviation Ping!....................Snakes on a Plane!..............
Surprised no mention of whether th pilot’s or other seats needed special cleaning after landing.
My question would be, are there any more.
I’d jump light if it fit my trouser legs.
It’s a good thing that the plane did not have a Martin Baker installed, or the pilot’s name would be Otto!
SNAKES !!! Mother F***ING SNAKES ON THE PLANE !!!!
SNAKES !!! Mother F***ING SNAKES ON THE PLANE !!!!
My guess is that the snake was looking for a place to hibernate for the winter.................
They didn’t catch the snake which means it is still slithering around outside waiting for another ride.
“Erasmus said the snake was still curled up under his chair when he disembarked, but the reptile had disappeared by the time a professional snake catcher arrived on the scene.
Workers at Worcester flying club, where the plane had originally departed, revealed they had earlier seen a snake slithering under the aircraft, but it vanished before they could grab it.”
i would have just continued to fly over it...
badda boom.
Reminds me of the joke I thought up about Justice Clarence Thomas during his confirmation hearings when he was accused of being a fan of the porn star named “Long Dong Silver”. At about that time the island of Guam was plagued by
Brown Tree Snakes that grew to about ten feet long. I imagined that he paid a formal visit to the island, had to go to the toilet at night, and one of the legless friends slithered up between his legs. Noticing something odd, he looked down, saw the critter emerging, and exclaimed,”OMG! I knew I had good one but didn’t believe it was so much better than Long Dong’s.”
Might as well hibernate in Welkom…it sounds inviting.
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