The bunny is reported to have died in the cargo section of a plane flying from London Heathrow to O’Hare International Airport in Chicago.
Weeks after the furore caused by their treatment of a passenger who was forcibly removed from a flight, United Airlines has been hit with another public relations blow following the death of a rabbit on its way to becoming the biggest rabbit in the world on a transatlantic flight.
According to The Sun, a ten-month old bunny rabbit named Simon was being flown to meet a new celebrity owner in the United States when it died in the cargo section of a United Airlines Boeing 767 while en route from London Heathrow to O’Hare International Airport in Chicago.
Measuring three foot in length, Simon, a continental giant rabbit, was on his way to surpassing his father Darius, who at four feet and four inches, is the biggest rabbit in the world.
Speaking to The Sun, breeder Annette Edwards said: “Simon had a vet’s check-up three hours before the flight and was fit as a fiddle.
“Something very strange has happened and I want to know what.
“I’ve sent rabbits all around the world and nothing like this has happened before.”
The Sun report that United Airlines are now facing potential legal claims from the client who had bought Simon and from Annette Edwards, who once had plastic surgery to look like the cartoon character Jessica Rabbit.
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“The client who bought Simon is very famous,” Edwards told The Sun.
“He’s upset.”
Commenting on the incident, United Airlines told The Sun that they are “reviewing this matter”.
News of the death of the rabbit comes in the same month that United Airlines attracted a whirlwind of publicity for all the wrong reasons following the forcible removal of a passenger, 69-year old David Dao, from an overbooked flight on a United Airlines plane in Chicago.
Having initially refused to give up his seat, Dao was aggressively dragged from the plane by security officials, suffering a series of injuries, including concussion and a broken nose, in the process.
Lawyers representing Dao have since filed court papers that could earn him significant compensation as a result.
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