QuickCheck: Did a snake force a plane to land in Kuching?

A viral message claims that a plane bound for Tawau was forced to make an unplanned stop in Kuching after a snake was found aboard. Is this true?

Verdict:

TRUE

According to AirAsia chief safety officer Capt Liong Tien Ling, a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Tawau was diverted to Kuching on Thursday (Feb 10) evening as a precautionary measure after the snake was spotted.

"As soon as the captain was aware, he made the decision to divert the aircraft to Kuching," he said in a statement Friday (Feb 11).

"This is a very rare incident which can occur on any aircraft from time to time," he said.

Liong said appropriate action was taken to get the reptile out of the aircraft before it rerouted back to Tawau.

He added that they were unaware of how the snake ended up on the plane and whether or not it belonged to one of the passengers.