Pigeons board a Delta flight, causing pandemonium and 2 trips back to the gate

By Shafiq Najib

A Delta Air Lines flight was delayed twice on Saturday after two pigeons caused chaos onboard.

The first bird began flying around the cabin shortly after boarding, prompting the aircraft to return to the gate. Ground crew removed it, but as the plane taxied out for takeoff, a second pigeon took flight, forcing the flight back once again.

Tom Caw

Video captured by passenger Tom Caw shows a man using his jacket in an attempt to catch one of the pigeons onboard.

A video filmed by passenger Tom Caw and obtained by ABC News shows a man attempting to catch one of the pigeons using his jacket. The unusual incident happened aboard Delta Flight 2348, a regularly scheduled flight from Minneapolis to Madison, Wisconsin.

Delta has since issued an apology for the disruption.

In a statement to ABC News on Tuesday, the airline confirmed the flight was delayed by 56 minutes and said it "appreciates the careful actions of our people and our customers to safely remove two birds from the aircraft prior to departure and we apologize to our customers for the delay in their travel."

Caw first shared footage and details of the incident on Instagram.

"When I boarded Delta Flight 2348 at MSP tonight, I overheard another passenger tell a flight attendant there was a pigeon on the plane," he wrote in the caption. "The pilot got on the mic and confirmed a pigeon was on the plane, and said he had no experience with this situation. Baggage handlers boarded and carried the pigeon off. People applauded. A young girl asked if she could pet it."

But the saga wasn't over.

Caw said that after the aircraft began taxiing to the runway, a second pigeon made its presence known.

"This is my video of it flying through the cabin," he continued. "It was caught, and we returned to the gate. Pilot said when he radioed the control tower about us coming back due to a pigeon, the guy said that was a first for him. Pilot told him it was the second time for him—the first being half an hour earlier."

Tom Caw

Video captured by passenger Tom Caw shows a man using his jacket in an attempt to catch one of the pigeons onboard.

The second bird was also removed -- alive and well -- by another baggage handler, according to Caw.

"My guess is the pigeons were tired of flying and wanted snacks," he joked. "They didn't know this flight to MSN is too short for Delta to offer beverage/snack service."

The Airbus A220, carrying 119 passengers and five crew members, departed from Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport and landed at Dane County Regional Airport in Madison, according to FlightAware.com.