SAVANNAH, Ga. — There are a lot of reasons why a flight may get delayed, but most people never expect to be held up on the tarmac because an alligator is on the runway.
That happened last month at Savannah-Hilton Head International Airport as a Delta flight was getting ready to take off.
In air traffic control audio from March 20, the pilot alerts the tower that there’s an issue.
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“There’s a … probably six-foot gator sitting on the taxiway,” the pilot told the tower.
“Six foot?” the tower responded.
“Yeah, he’s about six foot. Just laid down,” the pilot said.
The tower then reached out for help, and crews were able to safely remove the gator.
“Affirmative, we have the alligator, and we’re going to relocate it outside the AOA,” another official said on the audio a bit later.
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