A swarm of bees gathered on the wing of a Delta Airlines plane.
A swarm of bees gathered on the wing of a Delta Airlines plane in the US on Wednesday, causing the flight to be delayed by several hours as the personnel tried to persuade the insects to buzz off, as per a report in CBS News.
The flight data showed that the plane was originally scheduled to depart from Houston for Atlanta at 12:25 pm Eastern time but was delayed until about 4:30 pm due to the bee swarm.
As soon as the bees were discovered, a passenger on the aircraft tweeted a detailed account of what happened, including the suggestion of contacting a beekeeper to get the insects out of the area.
"My flight leaving Houston is delayed because bees have congregated on the tip of one of the wings. They won't let us board until they remove the bees. But how on earth will this happen? Won't they leave the wing when we take off?" one of the passengers Anjali Enjeti said in a tweet. She also shared a picture of the bees stuck to the wing of the plane.
She continued, "The gate agent just announced that they're getting someone to come look at the bees. Who? Don't we need a bee expert to identify the queen and remove her and won't the rest follow?"
The airline reportedly considered several measures, including pest treatment and contacting a beekeeper, as it was unsure whether the bees would flee once the plane took off.
The pilot later provided an update on the issue - that the beekeeper was never contacted because they were not permitted to touch the aircraft and pest control was not permitted to spray the aircraft, according to Ms Enjeti. "Would have a big highlight of my life to see a beekeeper de-bee a plane wing. It's going to be hard to let go of this. The disappointment is real," she added.
"Tried to blow exhaust from vehicle on the wing tip. Bees were not impressed," she said in another tweet.
The passenger also said that many people were cranky and frustrated with the flight delay. "Wish you could hear people on the phone here trying to explain to why our flight is delayed."
"Omg y'all. Entire the flight crew deplaned. Delta decided to give our gate to another flight. As soon as our plane's engine turned on, THE BEES LEFT!!! All Delta had to do was TURN ON THE PLANE," she added.
According to a Delta spokesperson, the bees flew away as the aircraft pushed back from the gate without any passengers on board. "Bee-lieve it or not, Delta flight 1682 from Houston-Bush to Atlanta took a delay this afternoon after a friendly group of bees evidently wanted to talk shop with the winglet of our airplanes, no doubt to share the latest about flying conditions at the airport," the spokesperson told CBS News.