Ripples the cat delays AC flight.

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Localizer
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Ripples the cat delays AC flight.

Post by Localizer »

Loose cat in cockpit delays Air Canada flight.

An escaped cat kept an Air Canada flight grounded for several hours Wednesday.

Flight 603 was supposed to leave Halifax for Toronto just after 5:30 a.m. But a cat got loose from its carrier in the cabin and ran into the cockpit.

"It's hilarious, really. It's so random," passenger Kyle Warkentin told CBC News.

Warkentin first heard about the trouble when a flight attendant announced they were looking for a cat.

Ten minutes stretched into 20. More time went by with no sign of Ripples the cat. The attendants apologized for the delay.

"Then the engine turned off and the whole power on the plane turned off, and they said they were doing this to calm the cat," Warkentin said.

As the crew scoured the plane, the cat's owner repeatedly called out for Ripples.

Warkentin could see into the cockpit at one point, and said it looked as if it had been taken apart.

"It wasn't just a simple matter of trying to find it under someone's feet. It was actually in within the wires of the plane. So it was pretty bizarre how it got there," he said.

Peter Spurway, spokesman for the airport, said the cat got into the cockpit avionics.

"The way the Air Canada folks described it to me is they had to disassemble part of the cockpit to get to the poor little cat, which was terrified, as you can imagine," Spurway said.

Ripples was eventually found and returned to its carrier.

Warkentin said they were told the flight couldn't leave until the wiring was checked for damage.

"The cat was kind of in some tricky spots so they wanted to make sure there was no wires bit through or something like that," he said.

Spurway said it came down to the safety of passengers.

"We're looking at several hours of delay, which is very, very unfortunate. The primary concerns are let's retrieve the pet safely and then let's make sure that everything is proper for the plane to go," he said.

Warkentin, who was on his way to Saskatoon for a conference, said passengers were let off the plane and Air Canada workers helped them reschedule their connecting flights.

He said the owner of the wayward cat was very upset.

"She was shaking, the poor thing," he said.

Warkentin commends Air Canada for the way it handled the bizarre incident. But added, "they may have to make a new amendment to their policy on animal carrying."

For Spurway, the case of the escaped feline is a first.

"I have not encountered the cat loose in the cockpit before. In my chat with the Air Canada folks, my impression was this was new for them as well," Spurway said.

Ariel Detraz, another passenger, considers it a "freak accident."

"I just feel really bad for the lady," Detraz said. "I think the cat has probably had enough trauma for its lifetime."

The flight left Halifax at 9:45 a.m., about four hours later than scheduled.
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TopperHarley
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Re: Ripples the cat delays AC flight.

Post by TopperHarley »

At first I thought the cat's name was Nipples. Ripples is just a silly name to give to a cat.
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Prairie Chicken
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Re: Ripples the cat delays AC flight.

Post by Prairie Chicken »

Poor Ripples!

Hmmm, I've heard of the cat, duck & dog method of IFR, but an avionics cat?

Now, how to write that one up in the log...
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DanWEC
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Re: Ripples the cat delays AC flight.

Post by DanWEC »

The number one reason why everyone wants to be a pilot.... always being chased by a pussy.

If asked I'll deny I said it.
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fish4life
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Re: Ripples the cat delays AC flight.

Post by fish4life »

maybe there was a mouse in the cockpit
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pilotbzh
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Re: Ripples the cat delays AC flight.

Post by pilotbzh »

All the rats haden't left the ship yet I guess...
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Sea2Sky
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Re: Ripples the cat delays AC flight.

Post by Sea2Sky »

Cat 1 approach? :lol:
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Re: Ripples the cat delays AC flight.

Post by GGCC »

Sea2Sky wrote:Cat 1 approach? :lol:

No he was an Ag Cat, VFR...... :mrgreen:
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kevind
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Re: Ripples the cat delays AC flight.

Post by kevind »

DanWEC wrote:The number one reason why everyone wants to be a pilot.... always being chased by a pussy.

If asked I'll deny I said it.
Wasnt the pilot doing the chasing and the cat got away...
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FlyGy
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Re: Ripples the cat delays AC flight.

Post by FlyGy »

Ripples just wanted to hang out on the flight deck with the other two pussies.

Sorry, couldn't resist, I have great respect for our pilots, regardless which airline they fly for.
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