NACs Hong Kong - Kathmandu flight has been cancelled while efforts to trap the mouse are ongoing. The same plane had been grounded for over 11 hours in Kathmandu Tribhuvan Internation Airport because of a mouse spotted late Monday night.
"The mouse that has grounded the plane in Hong Kong is not the same one seen while the aircraft was at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) Monday," Rebuplicica cited NAC Spokesperson Raju Bahadur KC as saying.
"Our engineers have photographs of the mouse that was found dead stuck to sticky glue used as a trap," KC added.
JJ Pinsloo, shift controller of Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company Limited (HAECO), which refuels and does minor maintenance for NAC in Hong Kong, confirmed that a small mouse was spotted in the cockpit by pilots at around 6:45 pm local time.
"We have taken the aircraft under our control and have contacted the pest control department as we are not authorized to kill the mouse,"JJ Pinsloo was cited by Rebuplica.
"The pest control personnel will place traps in the plane and come around six hours later to see if the mouse has been trapped," he said, adding said that the plane would have to remain longer at the airport or even be released to fly back to Kathmandu.
All 84 passengers, including around 15 foreigners, were set to fly to Kathmandu Tuesday evening on the plane,according to NAC Station Manager in Hong Kong Gaur Lal Dangi.
"We`ll make arrangements for their accommodation at hotels like Regal and Holiday Inn as rooms for all can`t be found at one hotel, " Dangi said.
(U.C003)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
Copyright © ANTARA 2011
