Stowaway Snake Found on Commercial TUI Flight From Mexico to London

Stowaway Snake Found on Commercial TUI Flight From Mexico to London

  • A cabin cleaner discovered a stowaway snake on a Tui Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner at London Gatwick after a nine-hour flight from Cancun, Mexico
  • Tui temporarily grounded the aircraft and laid traps, but the snake evaded capture and disappeared inside the plane
  • Experts eventually concluded the snake had likely left the aircraft on its own, allowing Tui to resume normal flight operations
The Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner was immediately grounded at London Gatwick airport while specialist traps were laid out inside the cabin
Aviation staff were shocked when a hidden stowaway snake was discovered onboard a recent Tui flight. Image: @Ianpb1987
Source: Twitter

A cabin cleaner made an unexpected discovery at London Gatwick airport on 5 June after a Tui Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner touched down from Cancun, Mexico. Hiding somewhere inside the aircraft was a non-venomous snake that had quietly survived the entire nine-hour transatlantic journey without a single passenger noticing it. An aircraft cleaner found the reptile during a routine check after the plane landed.

The snake that refused to be caught

Tui immediately grounded the aircraft as a precaution and set traps throughout the cabin to locate and remove the unwanted passenger. Despite the efforts of the airline's team, the snake proved impossible to track down and eventually vanished somewhere within the plane. With traps going untouched and no further sightings reported, wildlife experts were brought in to assess the situation.

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How the snake possibly gained entry into the plane

Their conclusion gave Tui the all-clear, UK publication Independent reported. The experts advised that the snake had most likely found its way off the aircraft altogether, rather than remaining hidden inside. On that basis, the airline was satisfied that the plane posed no risk to travellers and standard flight operations resumed. Remarkably, not one passenger on the Cancun-to-Gatwick flight reported seeing the snake at any point during the journey, suggesting the reptile kept well out of sight throughout the trip.

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The flight had departed from Mexico to London
Aviation experts eventually cleared the aircraft to resume operations, believing that the animal had exited the plane entirely. Image: Ketut Subayinto
Source: UGC

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Source: Briefly News

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Bongiwe Mati avatar

Bongiwe Mati (Human Interest Editor) Bongiwe Mati is a Human Interest reporter who joined Briefly News in August 2024. She holds a Bachelor of Arts Honours degree from the University of the Western Cape. Her journalism journey began in 2005 at the university newspaper. She later transitioned to marketing and sales at Leadership Magazine under Cape Media (2007-2009). In 2023, she joined BONA magazine as an Editorial Assistant, contributing to digital and print platforms across current news, entertainment, and human interest categories. Bongiwe can be reached at bongiwe.mati@briefly.co.za