A FLIGHT was fumigated in Madrid after the pilot was bitten by a rogue spider, causing delays to onward journeys.
The pilot was allergic to the critter and the flight was grounded to treat him with anti-inflammatory medicine.
It touched down in Madrid where it was fumigated before its next journey to Vigo, northern Spain.
Despite this, worried passengers got on the flight nervously checking their seats for other creepy crawlies.
The Iberia Airbus A320 was flying from Dusseldorf, Germany to the Spanish capital.
It is thought the spider got on the plane during a stopover in the Moroccan city of Casablanca earlier that week.
An adventurous insect, the spider had touched down in Brussels, Zurich and Toulouse before making its appearance.
The pilot was reportedly treated with Urbason, the brand name for Methylprednisolone, a medication widely used to treat inflammatory diseases and allergic reactions.
He reportedly suffered no lasting health effects from the incident.
Last year, a plane was grounded over five days after more than 130 hamsters escaped their cages while in the hold.
They were reportedly part of a pet shop delivery to the Azores archipelago capital, Ponta Delgada.
The havoc caused by the furballs led to extensive damage and prevented the plane from returning to Lisbon, where it had begun its journey.