Sri Lanka’s national airline announced that its aircraft was grounded for three days after a rat was found on board during a flight.
Sri Lankan Airlines officials confirmed to Fox News Digital that a rat was found on board an Airbus A330-300 during a flight from Lahore, Pakistan, to Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on Thursday, February 22. .
The plane was grounded for three days in the Sri Lankan capital and its fuselage was sprayed with rat poison.
Airline technicians also inspected the aircraft’s wiring for rodent damage.
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SriLankan Airlines Airbus 330-300 landing at Frankfurt Rhine-Main International Airport. SriLankan Airlines is the flag carrier of Sri Lanka and a member airline of the oneworld airline alliance. (Fabrizio Gandolfo/SOPA Image/LightRocket, Getty Images)
The airline said it cannot fly planes until the cause of the stowaway rats is determined.
The airline said: “We could not fly the aircraft without ensuring that the rats were not infested.” “He was found dead.”
Officials said the plane was back in service, but the small national carrier was still experiencing delays after being grounded for three days.
The otter was one of two found on a plane bound for Taiwan after it was captured on the cabin floor. (viral press)
News of the naughty rats comes just months after rats and otters terrorized passengers traveling from Bangkok to Taiwan.
The mayhem erupted on low-cost airline VietJet Airways after flight attendants noticed an albino rat and an otter about a foot long running around the floor.
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A subsequent police search of the ship found boxes containing 28 live turtles, a snake, a marmot, two otters, and two other unspecified rodents. After landing in Taipei.
A passenger recorded a video of the otter after airline staff noticed its presence. (viral press)
Police said the female passenger is suspected of smuggling the creature through security. Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Thailand.
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The woman was fined $31,000 for smuggling.
FOX News’ Peter Aitken contributed to this report.
