A passenger and her 'emotional support squirrel' forced the evacuation of a packed Frontier Airlines flight in Orlando on Tuesday.
At check-in, the passenger advised staff that she had an 'emotional support animal', but didn't clarify it was a squirrel. Emotional support animals are common on flights in the United States, but not all creatures are welcome in the cabin.
"We do not accept unusual or exotic animals including but not limited to rodents, reptiles, insects, hedgehogs, rabbits, sugar gliders, non-household birds or improperly cleaned and/or animals with foul odour," reads Frontier Airlines' website.
Once the woman had boarded the flight, staff asked her to leave the aircraft and work out a solution.
But according to a statement from the airline, the woman and her squirrel were going nowhere, and police had to be called.
"When she refused to deplane, Orlando Police were called and requested that everyone be deplaned so they could deal with the passenger."
Fellow passengers were unsympathetic, their travel plans delayed while police worked to remove the woman from the flight.
"Police eventually escorted the passenger off the aircraft and took her to the main terminal," Frontier Airlines said.
As the woman and her squirrel were wheeled through the departure gate and the hundreds of delayed passengers, she raised her middle finger to the crowd.
One of the delayed passengers voiced her disapproval, to which the woman replied "Shut up, bitch."
Newshub.
