Cat accidentally left on plane, takes 3 trips and travels 4,500 miles: “How could this happen?”

A Maine coon named Mittens accidentally became a jetsetter this month when her cage was neglected in the hold of a plane, and she traveled between New Zealand and Australia three times in 24 hours.

Mittens, 8, is booked on a one-way trip with her family from Christchurch, New Zealand to their new home in Melbourne, Australia on January 13. But owner Margo Neas said Wednesday that while she was waiting for Mittens to be unloaded from the plane’s cargo hold, three hours passed with no sign of the cat.

Then ground staff told Neas the plane had returned to New Zealand – with Mittens still on board. The return trip involves about 7.5 hours in the air.

“I said, how can this happen? How can this happen? Oh my God,” Neas said.

The distance from Christchurch, New Zealand, to Melbourne, Australia is about 1,500 miles — meaning the cat traveled roughly 4,500 miles before being reunited with Neas.

The Air New Zealand pilot was told about the extra passenger during the flight and turned on the heating in the hold to keep Mittens comfortable, she added. Neas was told that the stowed wheelchair blocked the baggage handler’s view of Mittens’ cage.

“It wasn’t a great start to our new life in Melbourne because we didn’t have a family, we weren’t complete,” she said.

But the saga had a happy ending. The pet removal company Neas used to arrange Mittens’ trip met the cat on her return to Christchurch and arranged for her to get back on the plane for another trip to Melbourne – this time only one way.

The glove lost weight, but was otherwise unharmed.

“She basically just ran into my arms and just snuggled in here and just had the most cuddles of all time,” Neas said. – It was such a relief.

Air New Zealand will reimburse all costs associated with Mittens’ trip and apologize for the distress caused, the airline said in a statement.

“We will be working closely with our ground operator in Melbourne to ensure this does not happen again,” spokeswoman Alisha Armstrong said.

Meanwhile, Mittens, who is not normally a gentle pet, “is the cuddliest she’s ever been,” Neas said.

“The cat is getting as much attention as it wants right now because we are absolutely and completely relieved to have her back.”

No he told the New Zealand Herald that she received a nice call from the airline’s acting sales manager.

“He acknowledged my concerns and mentioned that he would feel the same if it was his family pet,” Neas told the newspaper.