United Airlines may get sued after potential world's biggest rabbit dies on board

Simon was expected to outgrow its father Darius whose 4ft 4in size had won him the title of world’s biggest rabbit

Just days after it faced a worldwide backlash over a controversy, United Airlines is set to put up with another PR nightmare as a rabbit destined to be world’s biggest died in one of its flights.

The rabbit named Simon was to make a world record because of its unusually huge size. The three-feet mammal was expected to outgrow its father Darius whose 4ft 4in size had won him the title of world’s biggest rabbit.

The bunny was being transported via a Boeing 767 flight from Heathrow to Chicago but couldn’t make it to the O'Hare International Airport alive.



“Simon had a vet’s check-up three hours before the flight and was fit as a fiddle,” its breeder Annette Edwards said.

“Something very strange has happened and I want to know what. I’ve sent rabbits all around the world and nothing like this has happened before,” she added.

The rabbit was found dead on arrival at the O’Hare, the same airport where not many days ago a passenger of the United Airlines was dragged off a flight.

"We were saddened to hear this news,” a spokesperson for the United Airlines said.

"The safety and well-being of all the animals that travel with us is of the utmost importance to United Airlines and our PetSafe team. We have been in contact with our customer and have offered assistance. We are reviewing this matter."

The breeder and the new owner to whom the rabbit was being transported are planning to sue the airlines after the incident.



The world’s biggest rabbit, Darius, who is named in the Guinness World Record costs around £2,400 per year in food only. Simon was expected to carry on the tradition of the family by outgrowing its father.

Data from the US Department of Transportation show that since February, 2015 there have been 35 animal deaths in aircraft across the United States. United Airlines was responsible for 14 of these deaths during that period.

United Airlines sparked outrage earlier this month for the treatment of a passenger who was physically dragged off a plane the airline had overbooked, and one of the security officers involved in the incident was placed on leave pending an investigation.

Videos posted online by other passengers showed a man screaming as officers yanked him from his seat on United Flight 3411 before it departed from Chicago O’Hare International Airport to Louisville, Kentucky.

The article originally appeared on The Telegraph