South African authorities paid tribute this Friday to the pilot of the plane after making a successful emergency landing earlier this week a venomous snake sneaked into the cabin.

Rudolph Erasmus He was flying a small plane between the South African cities of Bloemfontein and Pretoria, with four passengers on board, when he saw in its place a great Cape cobra, one of the most dangerous snake species in Africa.

Despite the risk and tension of the situation, he managed to land the plane, without major incidents, in the city of Welkom, midway through the flight path.

“I want to congratulate Rudolf on his courageous decisions and handling of a potential plane crash,” said Poppy Khoza, director of the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA).

“He managed to keep his composure in the face of a dangerous situation and land the aircraft safely and without injury to itself or passengers,” he added.

Erasmus explained to the South African press that he had noticed the presence of the snake during the flight, when he felt something cold on his back.

“At first I thought it was my water bottle but then I realized it was something else. And I decided not to move,” she explained to News24 of an incident on Monday.

On Monday, the pilot had an experience similar to the one Samuel L. Jackson had in the 2006 film Terror on board (Snakes on a plane). A dangerous cobra appeared in the small twin-engine Beechcraft Baron 58 aircraft he was flying and forced him to make an emergency landing.

Erasmus was with 4 passengers when he discovered the Cape cobra under his seat, a snake with enough venom to kill 9 people. Before breaking the news to those traveling with him, he had to think it over.

The Cape cobra is a snake very present in the south of the African continent and has a deadly venom that requires immediate attention.

Erasmo was afraid that the cobra would bite him or go behind and make a mess, but trying to keep calm so as not to make the situation worse, the pilot finally reported: “Listen, the snake is inside the plane. It’s under my seat, so let’s get off the ground as soon as possible.”

The passengers were completely silent. “You could hear a needle drop and I think everyone froze for a moment or two,” Erasmus told the BBC.

The South African made an emergency landing on his flight from Bloemfontein to Pretoria at the city of Welkom. There they all got out in time without suffering injuries.

And the cobra? She was still curled up under the seat. When a snake-savvy passenger tried to grab him, the animal disappeared from sight.

Before reboarding the plane, Erasmus made sure that the cobra was not yet inside the cabin. “I wasn’t thereso we all safely assume it crept in during the night or earlier that morning, which was Monday.”