Woman removed from plane in Israel after smuggling dog onboard

A woman was removed from a plane after she smuggled a dog onto a London-bound British Airways flight. She managed to get the tiny teacup Yorkshire terrier past security at Tel Aviv's Ben-Gurion Airport, which prides itself on having the strictest anti-terror measures in the world.

The Airbus A321 had taxied as far as the runway on Sunday night when a passenger alerted cabin and crew that there was a dog on board and the plane turned back to the stand. The passenger had heard a squeaking noise from under a seat. The dog owner was occupying a window seat. The passenger next but one to her raised the alarm.



BA staff questioned the woman, believed to be American, then after some discussion removed her, the dog and her luggage from the plane. One passenger said: "People are concerned about the security implications. How on earth did she manage to get a dog through security at Ben-Gurion?"

The captain announced that the woman had been removed after a dog was found in her bag. A British Airways spokesman said the passenger would have passed through all the relevant security and immigration points at Tel Aviv. She said: "We did not allow a female customer to travel on board our service from Tel Aviv to Heathrow after it was discovered, shortly after boarding, that she was carrying a small dog in her handbag."