Authorities praised a South African pilot who made an emergency landing after a venomous snake crawled into his seat on Friday for “displaying impeccable bravery. Rudolf Erasmus was flying a small private plane from Bloemfontein to Pretoria with four passengers earlier this week when he felt a large Cape Cobra snake move across his back. Despite the high pressure, he landed the plane safely in Welkom, a city roughly halfway along the route. I’d like to congratulate Rudolf on his brave actions and how he handled what could have been a major aviation incident, said Poppy Khoza, director of the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA). He remained calm in the face of a dangerous situation and successfully landed the aircraft without harm to himself or the passengers on board, demonstrating to the world that he is an aviation safety ambassador of the highest order.
Erasmus told local media that he noticed the snake while flying after feeling something cold press against his back. At first, I thought it was my water bottle… but then I realised it was something else and (so I) didn’t move, he told the News24 outlet. The incident happened on Monday.
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