Snakes on a Plane — Almost

The campy movie “Snakes on a Plane” played up a common phobia of many people — that’s right; snakes. But it was just a movie, right? Surely with modern airport security no one could get on a plane with a suitcase full of reptiles, right?

Right — so far. But a 22-year-old Saudi passenger in Cairo, Egypt made it all the way to his departure gate before officials stopped him to check his suspect suitcase. Inside, they found baby crocodiles, chameleons, and several snakes, including “at least one cobra, squirming to escape.” The man claimed not to know about any rules disallowing reptiles, and that he was transporting them to a Saudi university for research.

In May, another Saudi was caught at the airport with 700 live snakes in his carry-on luggage.

Samuel L. Jackson, this is not a dress rehearsal.