Furry frenzy: 132 hamsters escape cages aboard flight in Portugal, forcing grounding of plane
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A rodent rebellion unfolded during a flight on Nov 13 from Lisbon, where the animals were being transported to a pet store.
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION: UNSPLASH
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You may have heard of snakes on a plane, but have you heard about the hamster getaway aboard a flight?
An Airbus A321neo operated by TAP Air Portugal faced an unusual crisis when 132 hamsters reportedly escaped from their cages in the cargo hold, triggering a four-day grounding of the aircraft.
The rodent rebellion unfolded during a Nov 13 flight from Lisbon – where TAP Air Portugal is headquartered – to the Azores, where the animals were being transported to a pet store, CBS News reported on Nov 19.
According to Portuguese news platform Observador, the hamsters were part of a consignment that included other animals such as birds and ferrets.
When the plane landed in Ponta Delgada, the capital of the Azores archipelago of Portugal, baggage handlers discovered that the cages meant to contain the hamsters were damaged and empty.
What followed was a game of hide-and-seek as staff scrambled to track down the furry fugitives scurrying through the infrastructure of the plane, which is capable of carrying up to 200 passengers.
The rodents managed to evade capture for four days, with the final 16 rounded up on Nov 17, according to British news outlet The Independent.
A video published by Portuguese outlet Correio da Manha shows hamsters being retrieved from narrow spaces by handlers donning protective gloves.
After the last hamster was secured, the plane flew back to Lisbon on a special “ferry flight”, meaning it carried no passengers.
Data from FlightRadar24 showed the journey concluded without incident on Nov 18.
TAP engineers in Lisbon are currently inspecting the aircraft for any potential damage caused by the rodents, reported CBS News.
This bizarre incident is not the first time rodents have disrupted air travel.
In October, a video that went viral on TikTok and Instagram shows what appears to be a possum or rodent wriggling inside a cabin light fixture during a flight, reportedly operated by Spirit Airlines, from Dallas to Los Angeles.
In September, a Scandinavian Airlines flight had to be diverted when a live mouse sprang from an in-flight meal, The Independent reported.
TAP Air Portugal has yet to comment on its hamster predicament.
