Massive swarm of bees delay deplaning as firefighters called
A flight in India was delayed for more than an hour after bees swarmed the door of the aircraft, as seen in buzzy footage taking off online.
The un-bee-lievable incident occurred Monday morning on an Indigo flight that was slated to fly from Surat to Jaipur at 4:20 a.m., India Today reported.
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Baggage handlers were reportedly loading suitcases onto the aircraft when all of a sudden, it was bombarded by a biblical plague of stinging insects.
'IndiGo Flight 6E-784 Surat-Jaipur was delayed due to a bee incident, which is something not under our control, so the flight departed post clearance,' an airline spokesperson said. 'Standard protocols were followed.'
Jam Press/TIM
Wild footage shows the pollen collectors congregating on the open cargo door like something out of the 1992 horror movie 'Candyman.'
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As a result, the aircraft was ordered to remain on the ground until the buzzkills were dealt with.
The fire brigade arrived and attempted to drive the bees away with water.
Jam Press/TIM
Airport authorities initially tried to use smoke to disperse the swarm — a traditional technique used by honey harvesters in India and elsewhere — but to no avail.
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They then enlisted the fire brigade, which sprayed water on the bee ball.
However, that only attracted more bugs, creating panic among airport staffers.
Finally, after dousing the interlopers with both smoke and water, crews were finally able to drive the colony away sans any injuries or damage to the aircraft.
The plane was finally able to put its wheels up for Jaipur at 5:26 am — over an hour after the airplane was colonized.
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'IndiGo Flight 6E-784 Surat-Jaipur was delayed due to a bee incident, which is something not under our control, so the flight departed post clearance,' an airline spokesperson said.
'Standard protocols were followed.'
This isn't the first time a flight has been waylaid by bees.
Last year, passengers at a Brazilian airport were left stranded on the tarmac for more than an hour on Monday after a swarm of bees covered the wing of their plane.
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