A Delta flight had to reroute and return to Detroit after an unexpected ‘feathered’ passenger was discovered inside a cockpit. The stowaway – reportedly a tiny sparrow – apparently sneaked inside the flight deck during boarding.
The pilots of Flight 1943 from Detroit to Atlanta saw a small bird that snuck on board shortly after take-off on Saturday, AP reported, citing Delta’s statement. The captain decided to turn the jet around and return to Detroit to “avoid a potential distraction” during the flight, Delta said.
The plane landed safely in Detroit, and the unexpected passenger was removed from the cockpit and set free unharmed. While Fox 2 Detroit says it was a sparrow, the captain told ClickOnDetroit.com that the bird looked like a hummingbird.
Local media say that the bird story started before take-off. One of the pilots noticed the feathered creature flying inside the cockpit, so the maintenance crew searched hard for the bird but it vanished, according to Fox 2 Detroit. The plane took off and the bird suddenly reappeared in the cockpit.
“Literally an hour into the flight, he goes, I have an update that the bird is back and it’s going a little nuts in here in the cockpit and we do not feel safe continuing on this flight, so we’re going to go back to Detroit,” passenger Brian Buonassissi said, as cited by ClickOnDetroit.com local news website.
The stowaway, however, spoiled the New Year’s mood of some passengers who had to re-book their flights as the delay caused them to miss their connecting flights.