A family’s move from New Zealand to Australia went horribly wrong when they realised their cat had been left on the plane and flown back home.
Mittens, an eight-year-old Maine coon cat, was booked on a one-way trip from Christchurch, in New Zealand, to Melbourne, Australia, on 13 January.
Once they touched down in Melbourne, she was meant to be unloaded from the cargo hold but after three hours waiting, owner Margo Neas said there was no sign of her.
It was then that ground staff told Ms Neas the plane had returned to New Zealand – with Mittens still on board. The return trip involves about seven-and-a-half hours in the air.
“I said, ‘how can this happen? How can this happen? Oh my God’,” Ms Neas said.
“It was not a great start to our new life in Melbourne because we didn’t have the family, we weren’t complete.”
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The Air New Zealand pilot was told about Mittens’s presence mid-air, so they turned on the heating in the cargo hold to keep her comfortable, Ms Neas said.
She was told a stowed wheelchair had obscured a baggage handler’s view of Mittens’s cage.
Upon landing back in Christchurch, Mittens was met by the company Ms Neas had employed to take care of the cat’s transfer and they ensured she was safely put on a plane back to Melbourne to be reunited with her family.
Mittens had lost weight but was otherwise unharmed.
“She basically just ran into my arms and just snuggled up in here and just did the biggest cuddles of all time,” Ms Neas said. “It was just such a relief.”
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Air New Zealand apologised for the blunder and said it would refund all costs associated with the animal’s travel, according to a statement by the airline.
“We’ll work closely with our ground handler in Melbourne to ensure this doesn’t happen again,” said spokesperson Alisha Armstrong.
Meanwhile Mittens, not usually an affectionate pet, is “the cuddliest she’s ever been”, said Ms Neas.
“The cat gets as much attention as she wants right now because we’re just so absolutely and utterly relieved to have her back.”
