Scorpion on plane stings man

 ST File Photo

SNAKES were not the star in this story, and neither was Samuel L. Jackson.

It was a stinging scorpion.

55-year-old Jeff Ellis had dozed off on a flight while travelling between Seattle and Alaska and awoke when he felt something tickling his arm, reported Sky News.

Mr Ellis said: "I felt it on my shirt sleeve and brushed it off. I thought it was a little spider or something. Then I felt it back on my elbow."

He grabbed it with a napkin while his girlfriend called a flight attendant over, who tossed the bark scorpion into a clear plastic bag.

He then had to wait for a panicky 30 minutes before the flight landed, checking himself for signs of a fatal allergic reaction.

"In the movies, scorpions kill people," he said. "I was just nervous, on edge, making sure that my heart was beating normal, that I wasn't sweating."

The incident terrified children who were sitting nearby.

"Their mother told the flight attendant, 'Get that thing out of my face'," Mr Ellis said.

Airline officials believe the scorpion was picked up in Texas where the flight originated. Spokeswoman for Alaska Airlines Bobbie Egan said the airline has never had a poisonous creature on one of its flights before.

For his troubles, Alaska Airlines has offered him 4,000 frequent-flier miles and two round-trip tickets.

(Sky news, ABC news)