Ninety passengers aboard an Egypt Air flight from Cairo to Kuwait could have used actor Samuel L. Jackson this week after a snake reportedly bit a Jordanian man who smuggled the reptile onboard . Jackson 's character in the movie `` Snakes on a Plane '' tries to figure out how to save the aircraft after crates of hyped-up serpents started killing the cast . There was n't quite that kind of drama on Monday , but the incident forced the pilot to make an emergency landing in the Egyptian resort town of Al Ghardaqa on the Red Sea , according to The Jordan Times . An Egypt Air official told the paper an investigation revealed that the 48-year-old passenger , who owns a reptile shop in Kuwait , had hidden the Egyptian cobra in a carry-on bag . The passenger was trying to control the snake after it bit his hand and started slithering under the seats . The Egyptian daily al-Masry al-Youm reported that the man refused medical treatment , claiming his wound was only superficial . The plane resumed its flight to Kuwait after local authorities confiscated the snake . Doctors told the passenger he should spend 24 hours in a hospital for observation , but the man refused , the Egyptian Air official said , according to The Jordan Times . Egyptian cobras are commonly found across North Africa . According to wildlife experts , the cobra 's venom is so deadly it can kill a full-grown elephant in three hours or a person in about 15 minutes . The venom destroys nerve tissue and causes paralysis and death because of respiratory failure . Legend has it that in ancient times , the Egyptian queen Cleopatra used an Egyptian cobra -- also known as an asp -- to commit suicide .
A reptile shop owner smuggled an Egyptian cobra in his carry-on for an Egypt Air flight . The snake 's escape forced an emergency landing , where it was removed . The snake bit its owner , but the man refused medical attention , saying bite was superficial .