News Release
Continental Airlines Rescues Cat From Wheel Well
Cat flees competitor for the comfort of Continental
HOUSTON, July 19, 2001 -- A "cat"astrophe was averted today at the airport at Providence, R.I., thanks to the humanitarian efforts of several Continental Airlines (NYSE:CAL) employees who rescued "Muffy," a gray and white feline, from the wheel well of one of the airline’s MD80 aircraft.
The incident began at approximately 6:30 a.m. when the pet escaped from its kennel held in the baggage room of another carrier. The cat darted across the ramp and crawled into the wheel well of Continental flight 1477 as employees were preparing the aircraft for its on-time departure to Newark International Airport. Continental crews worked for more than seven hours to bring the cat to safety, including a failed early morning attempt to lure the cat from the wheel well with fresh salmon. The cat was finally pulled to safety after maintenance crews removed the aircraft’s wing to body faring panel at 1:30 p.m. local time. Continental returned the cat to its originally scheduled airline so that it may be reunited with its family.
"Continental has long been the preferred carrier for customers, I guess that reputation has extended to the animal world as well," said a Continental spokesperson. "We’re told Muffy appreciated the efforts of the Continental employees who rescued her. They are truly the cat’s meow."
While the frightened feline never posed a danger or threat to the aircraft nor its ability to fly, Continental executives canceled the morning departure from Providence to Newark for "humanitarian" reasons. The 82 customers on board were sympathetic to the dilemma and were reaccommodated on later flights to their final destinations.
Continental Airlines is the fifth largest airline in the U.S., offering more than 2,500 departures daily to 136 domestic and 92 international destinations. Operating hubs in Newark, Houston, Cleveland and Guam, Continental (continental.com) serves more international cities than any other U.S. carrier, including extensive service throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia.
Continental was named the 2001 Airline of the Year by Air Transport World, as well as the 1996 Airline of the Year, making it the only carrier to receive this honor twice in five years. Continental is in the top quarter of Fortune magazine’s "100 Best Companies to Work for in America," and is ranked the nation’s No. 1 airline in customer satisfaction for long and short-haul flights by Frequent Flyer Magazine and J.D. Power and Associates. Continental has received numerous awards for its BusinessFirst premium cabin (Condé Nast Traveler, OAG, Entrepreneur and SmartMoney magazines), OnePass frequent flyer program (InsideFlyer’s Freddie Awards) and overall operations and management (Fortune magazine).