Squirrel on a plane diverts flight

American Airlines diverted a Tokyo-to-Dallas flight, landing the airplane in Honolulu because the pilots found a squirrel in the cockpit.

Flight 176, a Boeing Co. 777 with 202 passengers aboard, arrived in Honolulu at 5:27 a.m. local time after the flight crew heard a noise in an overhead bin, found the squirrel and decided to land at the nearest airport, a spokesman for American said. It was standard procedure, he said, and based on concern that a squirrel could create a safety issue aboard the plane if it chewed through wires.

Passengers were sent to their destinations on other flights.