16 April 2009

Snake escape baffles Qantas

MELBOURNE ââ¬' Four escaped pythons caused a Qantas plane to be grounded in Melbourne after airline staff failed to find them.

The young pythons, four of 12 in a container in the Boeing 737-800's cargo hold, escaped during a flight from Alice Springs to Melbourne.

With Qantas staff unable to find the escapees among the luggage in the hold, the aircraft was removed from service for fumigation and a Melbourne-to-Sydney flight was cancelled.

A Qantas spokesman said the 12 juvenile Stimson's pythons measured about 15 cms and were travelling in "an appropriate" container.

He said it was not clear how the four had escaped.

Native to western and central Australia, the Stimson's python eats its prey whole ââ¬' and this includes small mammals, birds, frogs and other reptiles.

The snake, which grows to between 50 cms and one metre, is not venomous.

Source: The Age

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