Welcome aboard this SAS flight to Malaga. On the menu for today is a lovely reindeer goulash with a side of organic field mouse…what’s that? A diversion? Over lunch?
SAS A320neo Diverts After Mouse Pops Out of In-Flight Meal, Scurries Away
On Wednesday, September 18, 2024, a Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) flight from Oslo (OSL) to Malaga (AGP), SK4683, took off at from Oslo Gardermoen Airport at 2:05 pm local time, 10 minutes behind schedule. The flight to Spain’s Costa del Sol was scheduled to land at 6:05 pm and was operated by an Airbus A320neo (SE-DOX).
SAS does not (yet) have a business class on its short- and mid-haul flights, but does offer a more premium cabin it calls SAS Plus. That service includes a boxed meal (typically very delicious) served during the flight.
Well, one passenger got a lot more than bargained for when she opened her meal and out popped a mouse…and scurried away down the aisle (a BBC reporter happened to be sitting next to her and filed a report here).
Passengers tried to look for it…but it hid itself well and thereby prompted a diversion to Copenhagen (CPH), the main hub for SAS. Why a diversion over a little rodent? Standard protocol because of the risk of the mouse chewing critical electrical wiring. A SAS spokesperson explained:
“This is something that happens extremely rarely. We have established procedures for such situations, which also include a review with our suppliers to ensure this does not happen again.”
Impressively, the flight touched down in Copenhagen at 3:45 pm and took off again at 5:21 pm with a new aircraft (SE-ROR) and for Malaga. The flight ultimately arrived at 8:22 pm, just a couple hours late. Not bad considering the diversion!
CONCLUSION
A SAS flight diverted after a mouse jumped out of the meal…wow. But to the credit of SAS, a new aircraft and crew were quickly located in Copenhagen and the flight only arrived about two hours late, despite the diversion.
For whatever reason, I’m not grossed out by this. Sure, it makes me shudder a little bit, but I’m frankly surprised tiss does not happen more if these airline meal processing centers are anything like the warehouses I have worked in.
If the flight was from England , it would have been a sleeping dormouse .
Holding true to Nordic tradition, SAS now incorporates a hunting adventure into your meal service. I cannot believe that no one shrieked when the mouse popped out. It’s always frightens me when my lunch moves.
Animals love people food, processed full of sugar and carbohydrates.
A sequel plot line to Ratatouille. Have you ever tried a barbecued guinea pig? Finally, would you ever tell the tale of working at a warehouse?
I have my doubts that fancy boy Matthew has ever had to do any manual work his entire life.
Eye of Round Mouse.