Loose Pooch in Jet Cargo Hold Fetches Trouble

Usually when a dog escapes in an airplane cargo hold it leaves a mess to clean up afterward.

But on a July 24 United Airlines flight between San Francisco and Boston that carried 159 passengers, an Irish wolfhound did much worse. Not only did it chew its way out of a cage, it burrowed through the Fiberglass liner and into a bundle of wires, destroying some that control warning lights in the plane cockpit and others that extend the wing flaps, needed to slow the plane upon landing.

As the plane neared Boston’s Logan International Airport, warning lights came on in the cockpit, indicating something was amiss.

The pilot was able to land the plane at a slightly faster speed than normal because of the impaired flaps but still safely and within design specifications for the Boeing 767, United Airlines said in a statement Thursday.

Officials said the situation did not reach a crisis and ground crews at Logan were never instructed to prepare for an emergency landing.

How the dog got loose after it was loaded into the plane in San Francisco is under investigation, the airline said.

Luggage handlers reported that when they opened the cargo door, they found the Irish wolfhound, the world’s largest breed, wagging its tail, apparently eager to disembark.