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Pilot lands plane with snake in cockpit
Another Snakes on a Plane mid-air incident has created a heroic pilot in South Africa.
Pilot Rudolf Erasmus was hailed for ‘impeccable bravery.’
Erasmus felt a Cape cobra snake slithering on his back while at the controls of the small private jet.
He kept calm, which is just as well as the snake species is highly poisonous, The New York Times reported
Along with the black mamba, it is responsible for most snake deaths in southern Africa,.
While staying calm and focused, he diverted the small jet to a nearby airport and landed without incident while the snake remained in the cockpit.
The flight from Western Cape was carrying four passengers.
After landing a snake handler was called but could not locate the snake, figuring it had slithered away after passengers disembarked.
“I wish to congratulate Rudolf for the courageous steps taken and for how he handled what could have been a major aviation incident,” said South African Civil Aviation Authority director Poppy Khoza.
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Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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