By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2026-06-14 14:40:50 | Updated at 2026-06-14 15:50:44
1 hour ago
Sun seeking passengers got an unexpected surprise when a swarm of bees brought their journey to a standstill, after descending upon the aircraft and making themselves at home on the wing.
The bizarre incident unfolded on June 11, at Cancun International Airport as a United Airlines flight prepared for departure to Los Angeles, when ground crew spotted hundreds of bees clustered, on one of the plane’s wings.
Staff paused departure procedures as workers were brought in to safely deal with the swarm, prompting a brief 12 minute delay while the insects were swiftly removed from the aircraft.
Ferika Boss uploaded a video of the spectacle to X accompanied by the caption, 'My plane is delayed because "there are pretty much a bunch of bees on the wing" I'm crying bro lmao'.
Footage of the tarmac captured the remarkable sight of a thick mass of bees clinging tightly to the wing, forming an almost living blanket coating the metal surface, as curious airport staff gathered nearby.
For the patient passengers peering through terminal windows or from inside the cabin, the unusual interruption offered a memorable pre-flight spectacle few could have anticipated.
The bees were eventually cleared and the flight later departed safely for Los Angeles without further disruption.
'Some bees created a 'buzz' yesterday around United flight 1275, which took a short delay while we addressed the issue,' airline spokesperson Charles Hobart told USA Today.
A flight from Cancun to Los Angeles on June 11 was obstructed from takeoff when a swarm of bees descended upon the wing of the plane
Passengers were travelling from Cancun, Mexico to Los Angeles when the incident occurred
Footage from the event rapidly circulated social media in the following days, garnering over 4.2 million views and more then 900 reposts
'The flight safely departed afterwards, and our unexpected guests fortunately chose not to join us for the remainder of the flight,' Hobart quipped.
The Daily Mail has reached out to United Airlines for comment.
Social media users reacted to footage of the Cancun incident with a mix of amusement and disbelief, with some joking the passengers had been upgraded to 'buzziness class' while others praised crews for resolving the problem safely.
Though unusual, aviation run-ins with bees and other wildlife are not unheard of.
In 2024, a flight in India was delayed after a swarm of bees settled near an aircraft door, forcing airport workers to intervene before passengers could board.
In another bizarre incident in 2016, a plane at London’s Gatwick Airport was temporarily held up after bees gathered around the cargo area, requiring firefighters to spray water in an attempt to disperse them.
Bees are far from the only creatures to cause tarmac chaos.
In 2023, passengers aboard a Delta Air Lines flight from Detroit to Los Angeles endured an especially bizarre ordeal after a pigeon was spotted flying through the cabin shortly after takeoff, forcing the aircraft to return to the airport - only for reports to later emerge that a second pigeon had also somehow made its way onboard.
The delay lasted only 12 minutes as efficient crew managed to extract the bees from the aircraft
Honeybees commonly swarm when a colony splits, during that transition, thousands of bees can briefly cluster on trees, vehicles or, in rare cases, airplanes
This is not the first aviation run-in with wildlife, in 2009 US Airways flight was forced to make an emergency landing in the Hudson River after colliding with a flock of geese mid-flight
Bees have proven unseeming troublemakers for airlines around the world.
Presenting a unique challenge, many species of bees are protected and often need to need to be relocated rather then exterminated.
Experts say honeybees commonly swarm when a colony splits, with a queen leaving part of the hive to establish a new home.
During that process, thousands of bees can briefly cluster on trees, vehicles or, in rare cases, airplanes, while scout bees search for a permanent location.
