Rat grounds Alaska Airlines flight at Oakland International Airport
OAKLAND -- A rat that scurried onto a 737 from a jetway at Oakland International Airport Tuesday forced the Alaska Airlines flight to be canceled, airline officials said. The flight -- Alaska 915 -- was at Gate 10 at 8:30 a.m. for a flight to Portland, Oregon, when the rat was seen entering the plane, CBS San Francisco reports.
"A rat was spotted jumping from the jet way to inside the aircraft," the airline said in an email.
Matt Gough was on the plane with his family. "Our flight to Portland is delayed because when they opened the door on arrival a rat jumped into the plane," he wrote on Facebook. "There are 4 people trying to locate it."
Gough also took to Twitter, as did others.
When the rodent wasn't found, the passengers were taken off the aircraft.
"Most of the 110 passengers were rebooked on another flight to Portland later this evening, with some guests leaving on flights tomorrow," the airline said.
The plane was towed to a service area at the airport.
"The plane is currently out of service" the airline said. "It will be returned to operations once it's certified rodent-free by a professional exterminator. The aircraft will also be thoroughly inspected to ensure no damage has been done."
