Scorpions on a Plane: Samuel Jackson’s Next Blockbuster?

Next time you want to complain about the small seat or the child crying behind you, consider what an Alaska Airlines passenger went through, recently.

Alaska Airlines Flight 567 headed from Los Angeles to Portland, Oregon, was delayed after a passenger was stung by a scorpion. The plane was sitting on the runway waiting to taxi when the woman suddenly felt a sting on her hand.

The plane then went back to the gate where the woman was given medical attention but was cleared and released shortly after. The delay only ended up totaling 50 minutes. 

Authorities have said they don’t know how the scorpion got on the plane. The woman, however, did not get back on the flight. The airplane was fully exterminated after arriving in Portland, the airline said.

Coincidentally, the flight was taking the Oregon State University basketball team back home from an away game.

Oddly enough, it’s not the first time a passenger was attacked by a stowaway scorpion. A man was stung on another Alaska Airlines flight in June, 2011, going from Seattle to Anchorage. Jeff Ellis had been stung while the plane was in air adding additional stress given he had to wait for medical attention.

At least, in that case, they could guess the scorpion boarded — probably without a ticket — when the plane made an earlier stop in Austin, Texas.