Horse Gets Loose On Airplane, Forces It To Return To Airport

Yes, I know that is a 747-200 and not a 747-400. Please be nerds somewhere elsePhoto: Luc Williams & Pete O’Connor via Wikimedia Commons

A flight from New York’s JFK airport to Belgium had to turn around after a horse got loose in the Boeing 747’s cargo hold shortly after takeoff. The incident was reconstructed on the aviation YouTube channel “You can see ATC,” and claims it happened shortly after 6 p.m. EST on November 9.

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From the looks of the video, the pilot on Air Atlanta Icelandic flight 4592 reported that there was a loose horsey at about 31,000 feet, and requested that the 747-400 be allowed to return to New York since the crew couldn’t get the noble beast secured.

The HORSE ESCAPES the stall in cargo hold during flight. Boeing 747 returns to Kennedy. Real ATC

“We are a cargo plane. We have live animal, horse on board the airplane, and the horse managed to escape its stall. We don’t have a problem as of flying wise, but we need to return, return back to New York,” a pilot told air traffic controllers in Boston. “We cannot get the horse back secured.”

After dumping 20 tons of fuel to get their weight down near Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, the pilots landed back at JFK at about 6:35 p.m. EST and requested the help of a veterinarian. There’s no word on what happened to the animal, but ATC audio says the horse was having a tough time. Pilots requested some help.

“On the ramp, yes. We have a horse in problem — in difficulty,” the pilot said.

Eventually, the flight took off again and landed six hours later in Liege, Belgium without any other horse-related incidents.