This will not be the first time that a passenger has smuggled his cat on board a plane.
Flight TK 1843 was en route to Athens International Airport (ATH) from Istanbul Airport (IST) and had just begun taxiing for takeoff when passengers noticed the cat wandering around the cabin.
Without reservation
The flight crew was notified and the pilot immediately obtained permission from traffic control to return to the gate Flight time.
After some investigation, the airline discovered that the cat's owner, who had been booked on the flight, had taken the cat on board without a reservation or other appropriate means of transportation.
The owner put the cat in his hand luggage, where it was not discovered when he got up. Eventually, the cat and its owner were removed from the plane and the flight to Athens could resume for the rest of the passengers.
Article continues below adArticle continues below ad
The cat's owner has been blacklisted
According to the Turkish newspaper Daily Sabah The airline took the decision to blacklist the cat's owner, who had allegedly pulled the same stunt on a previous occasion.
Turkish Airlines allows cats, dogs and small birds into the cabin, as long as the animal in question is contained within a box with dimensions that should not exceed 23 cm in height, 30 cm in width, 40 cm in length, and a weight not exceeding that. Not exceeding eight kilograms.
Passengers traveling with pets in the aircraft cabin should keep the animals in a carrier or cage under the seat in front of them.
“Explorer. Unapologetic entrepreneur. Alcohol fanatic. Certified writer. Wannabe tv evangelist. Twitter fanatic. Student. Web scholar. Travel buff.”
