Goodness gracious, this is kind of terrifying…
In this post:
Air India passenger stung by scorpion
This incident happened on April 23, 2023, and involves Air India flight AI630 from Nagpur (NAG) to Mumbai (BOM). The short 425-mile flight was operated by a 13-year-old Airbus A319 with the registration code VT-SCV. According to reports, a female passenger was stung by a scorpion while the flight was airborne.
Upon landing, the passenger was seen by a doctor at the airport, and then treated at a hospital, before eventually being discharged. Air India says that officials from the airline accompanied the passenger to the hospital, and offered support until discharge. An airline spokesperson labeled this “an extremely rare and unfortunate incident.”
Following the incident, Air India conducted a complete inspection of the aircraft, and found the scorpion. A fumigation process was carried out — the plane was taken out of service for just over a day. It landed in Mumbai at around 10PM on April 23, and departed again around 7AM on April 25.
Stuff happens, but this is exceptionally rare
Occasionally we hear stories of unwelcome guests making their way onto planes. This includes everything from snakes on a plane…
To bats on a plane…
To birds on a plane…
However, in almost all cases, passengers aren’t actually attacked. Not only is it really rare to hear of a scorpion being on a plane, but on top of that, a passenger was stung.
Admittedly this kind of stuff can happen. After all, there are ways for critters to crawl into a plane, whether it’s through an open door, or some other compartment. However, I think it’s safe to say that this is something most of us would just rather not think about.
One of the things that (irrationally) scares people about flying is the lack of control they have over the experience. While that usually refers to pilots and/or the act of the plane flying safely, that’s perhaps even more the case when we’re talking about an animal getting on the plane, since there’s no way to escape.
Bottom line
An Air India passenger on a recent domestic flight was stung by a scorpion, requiring her to be hospitalized upon landing. I don’t ever recall a story of a scorpion biting a passenger, so that’s a pretty scary thing to think about. The next time I’m on a flight and am feeling a bit itchy, I’m going to try to not remember this story.
What do you make of this Air India scorpion incident?
I heard that peeing on the bite wound help alleviates the pain.
This scorpian likes to pee!
'Incredible India' 8-)
I am surprised that there aren't more incidents like this especially considering that tropical and desert areas of our planet are inhabited by venomous critters and aircraft have open doors and (as far as I am aware) do not take active measures to exclude such visitors. Or maybe we don't hear about them. A scorpion sting can be very painful and can vary in severity amongst species but human adults will not die unless there...
I am surprised that there aren't more incidents like this especially considering that tropical and desert areas of our planet are inhabited by venomous critters and aircraft have open doors and (as far as I am aware) do not take active measures to exclude such visitors. Or maybe we don't hear about them. A scorpion sting can be very painful and can vary in severity amongst species but human adults will not die unless there is an anaphylactic reaction. Spiders ditto. Snakes, though, can be a fatal proposition but, again, depending on species. The snake that was on the Aeromexico flight was likely some sort of boa and harmless. Good to see that Air India was fully supportive of that scorpion sting victim. She would not have seen the funny side of it as Sean M. did.
Scorpions are pretty nasty looking and come in all sizes. I lived in Arizona and only saw one once. Mostly they are like a bee sting and people don't usually go to the doctor for them. The bark scorpion is the worst one in Arizona and usually only small children will need medical attention. I read that no one has died from a scorpion bite in Arizona in 20 years. Obviously there are a number...
Scorpions are pretty nasty looking and come in all sizes. I lived in Arizona and only saw one once. Mostly they are like a bee sting and people don't usually go to the doctor for them. The bark scorpion is the worst one in Arizona and usually only small children will need medical attention. I read that no one has died from a scorpion bite in Arizona in 20 years. Obviously there are a number of species and who knows what they have in India. Spiders are the real dangerous critter in Arizona and other places.
Still better than being pissed on by BLM “allies” on us airlines.
WTAF are you going on about...
BLM ruining Australia. BLM ruining the world. BLM keeping me closeted
Bats, rats, scorpions, drunk pilots. Air India is the one airline I will never take.
Depends on the type of scorpion. There are many lethal ones. What’s most likely is that it got there on the plane from some passenger’s bag. They love hiding in folded fabrics, especially if iťs a little humid. If you ever travel to area where there is a lot of insects, don’t leave your bag open on the floor and at the time of packing take everything out and shake it well before packing again. I got stung by a scorpion exactly like this as well
Atleast it didn't pee on them.
Baby steps
Some scorpion bites actually can cause reduction in kidney function and urine output for a few days. So maybe this was a proactive measure to prevent another pee-gate incident!
I think @Pattl meant Wells Fargo affiliated scorpions peeing on business class passengers, not prevent another pee-gate.
But good to know scorpions can solve prostate problems.
Ouch! The stings really hurt. I couldn't wear a shoe for a couple weeks but thankfully most folks will not have a more serious reaction. That said, let's keep creepy crawlies off planes!
I mean that depends entirely on the type of scorpion. Can be anything from similar to a bee sting vs lethal.