Cat Missing at Brussels Airport Found Alive After 17 Days

A cat that went missing at Brussels Airport (Zaventem) after arriving on a flight from Romania has been found alive and reunited with its owner after 17 days. The heartwarming conclusion to the search was confirmed by VRT NWS on Tuesday.

The Disappearance

Mishu, a 10-year-old male Chartreux cat with a blue-grey coat and distinctive copper-coloured eyes, vanished on July 17 after travelling on Dan Air flight DN403 from Bacau, Romania. Because the cat weighed more than 8 kilograms, he exceeded the airline’s cabin travel weight limit and was placed in the aircraft’s cargo hold in a transport crate.

When Mishu’s owner, Camelia, a 56-year-old Romanian widow living in Belgium, went to collect her cat after landing, she was handed an empty, damaged transport carrier. The cage appeared to be slightly damaged at the top, with just enough room for the cat to escape.

“When my mother wanted to pick up Mishu, she only got his transport carrier back,” her daughter, Patricia Maria, told VRT NWS at the time. “Maybe the carrier fell or something heavy landed on it causing it to open. When we got it back, the carrier was definitely broken. That should of course never happen.”

The Search

Patricia launched a desperate public appeal, posting in multiple Facebook groups and asking airport staff to keep an eye out for the cat. The post was shared over 900 times. The family also contacted Dan Air, Brussels Airport, ground handling company Aviapartner, and various Brussels animal shelters.

According to The Brussels Times, CCTV footage showed Mishu jumping out of the cage while on a vehicle used to transport luggage from the aircraft to the airport. However, Brussels Airport initially said the camera footage showed nothing about the disappearance.

“My mother always takes Mishu with her when she travels. She is a widow and he is all she has,” Patricia said during the search. “That’s why I want to do everything to get him back.”

The family suspected that Mishu, being an indoor cat, might have hidden somewhere on the airport grounds, possibly in an air shaft or technical area.

The Discovery

On August 3, airport staff spotted Mishu on camera footage in the technical areas of the airport. Security personnel were able to catch the cat, and he was briefly cared for at the airport’s animal centre before being reunited with his owner.

“The people from the security service were then able to catch him,” Jeffrey Franssens, spokesperson for Brussels Airport, told VRT NWS. “The cat was then briefly taken in by the animal centre at the airport, where he was quickly picked up by his owner.”

Patricia described the emotional moment when she called her mother with the news. “I said: ‘Can you go to the airport?’ And she asked: ‘Why?’ I said: ‘They found Mishu.’ She couldn’t believe it. She was so happy and immediately jumped in a taxi to pick up Mishu.”

A Joyful Reunion

The reunion was deeply emotional. As L’Avenir reported, “My mother saw him and immediately started crying. And Mishu immediately started meowing. It was as if they were reunited after an eternity. This proves that anything is possible.”

Mishu was slightly thinner but in good health. “Mishu is a bit thinner, but I expected it to go worse with him,” Patricia said. “We never lost hope, but it still came as a surprise that they found him. My mother and I are so relieved.”

According to DPA International, it remains unclear exactly where the cat was found or how he survived for 17 days at the airport. Patricia noted that the family would like to thank the finder, but has not received more information about where Mishu was hiding all this time.

What’s Next

The story highlights concerns about pet safety during air travel, particularly for animals transported in cargo holds. It also raises questions about responsibility when pets are lost or injured during airline travel.

Mishu, meanwhile, has settled back into his routine as if nothing happened. As Patricia told L’Avenir, “He came home and immediately behaved as before. It was as if nothing had happened.”

For the family, the 17-day ordeal has ended in the best possible way. As Aviation24.be noted in its coverage of the initial disappearance, the case drew widespread attention and sympathy. The reunion serves as a reminder that even in the most unlikely circumstances, hope should never be abandoned.