Linton Chilcott is currently working in Asia, flying private passengers for Vista Jet. While preparing to welcome the passengers on board at KL airport (Malaysia) outward bound for Singapore, the crew discovers stowaways.
In an different situation, Linton would have shaken the bees into a box and taken them to the edge of the runway. However, this is the best alternative in the middle of a busy workplace where timing is all as the aircraft is prepared to reach the runway in time for its take-off slot. An alternative might have been to fly off with bees attached. However, there is the risk of bees being sucked into an engine.
As it happens, the bees still have a chance to fly off too, to their new home. They warm up quickly after the light water spray. The aircraft is just a brief stopping place while the scout bees decide where that home will be. They might not have reached that consensus before being removed from their resting place. However, their debate will resume and they should leave soon. It seems that settling on aircraft is not uncommon and I wonder if the smell of aviation fluid attracts them, but who knows?
An Apis cerana swarm can move a bit faster than Apis mellifera
It was a small swarm. Maybe a cast?
I applaud your concern for the bees. I suspect that this swarm alighted on your plane in the course of its flight to its new home, when the queen needed a rest break. With your help, I expect she (and her workers) obtained the rest they needed and were able to complete their journey to the new dwelling place. Good work.
Good to know this, Tom. Thank you. It is always tricky when you find a swarm in a situation where it is in a public space and you are not equipped to deal with it.
Thank you for not killing the transit Asian honeybee (Apis cerana) colony.
(^_^)
Thank you for your message. We hope that the swarm relocated and survived. Linton was very sorry that he could not do more to help the swarm but he had to take off at the time given by air traffic control.