The severed head of a small snake was discovered by a member of aircrew in their inflight meal aboard a recent SunExpress flight from Anakara, Turkey to the German city of Dusseldorf. The airline says it is urgently investigating how the snake head got into the food.

Video shared on social media and presumably taken by a member of the aircrew clearly shows the snake head in a casserole dish of half-eaten food in the galley of the aircraft.

SunExpress has reacted with horror to the incident, saying the reports are “absolutely unacceptable”. The airline has started an investigation but while that is still ongoing, the contract with the catering supplier has been put on hold.

In the past, SunExpress has been accused of serving food containing rogue snails and other bugs.

“With more than 30 years of experience in the aviation industry, it is our top priority that the services we provide to our guests on our aircraft are of the highest quality and that both our guests and employees have a comfortable and safe flight experience,” the airline said in a statement.

“We would like to inform you that the allegations and shares in the press regarding in-flight food service are absolutely unacceptable and a detailed investigation has been initiated on the subject,” the statement continued.

SunExpress is a Turkish-German airline which was originally founded in 1989 as a joint venture between Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa. The airline now provides charter and scheduled services across 90 destinations throughout Europe and further afield.

Back in June, American Airlines was slammed after a Business Class passenger on an international flight from Frankfurt to Dallas Fort Worth found what appeared to be small live bugs in his salad.

Sadly, bugs and other small animals can get into the food supply chain and these problems can and do affect all sorts of catering businesses. A severed snake head, though, is one of the more unusual finds.