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A pilot in the Lowveld region of South Africa recently faced a real-life Snakes on a Plane scenario.
Rudolf Erasmus was forced to make an emergency landing after what he believed to be a Cape cobra, one of South Africa's most venomous snakes, had crawled into the cockpit of the Beechcraft Baron 58 plane he was flying on Monday (April 3). Erasmus told Lowvelder that the flight, which had initially departed from Worcester, was en route to its final destination at Nelspruit Airfield following a layover at the Bram Fischer International Airport in Bloemfontein to refuel when he made the discovery.
“We were cruising at 11,000 feet in the air when I felt something cold against my hip," Erasmus said.
Erasmus said he initially thought he'd felt his bottle leaking before spotting the head of the snake and notifying the four passengers on the flight.
“It was receding under my chair. I kept quiet for minute or two, because I didn’t want the passengers to panic," Erasmus said. "I informed them a snake was under my seat in the cockpit and I needed to land the plane as soon as possible.
“Luckily everyone remained calm.”
Erasmus said he contacted authorities, who then gave him the clear to land at Welkom, the nearest airport at the time, which took about 10-15 minutes as the snake was calm while in the air. The pilot said he he was the last person to exit the small plane upon landing.
“I stood on the wing on the plane and moved the seat forward to try and spot the snake," Erasmus said. "It was curled up under my seat. It was quite a big fellow.”
The snake was reported to still be at large, despite engineers stripping down the plane post-landing and officials have not yet officially confirmed whether the snake was a Cape cobra.