Humanoid robot named Bebop causes Southwest Airlines flight delay out of Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport

OAKLAND, Calif. — Passengers on a Southwest Airlines flight from Oakland to San Diego arrived more than an hour late Thursday after an unusual traveler — a humanoid robot — prompted a runway delay.

The 70-pound robot, named Bebop, was traveling for work when it became the focus of questions and safety checks before departure.

Before boarding, Bebop even put on a brief show for passengers.

But once the robot was strapped in, concerns arose.

“Then they come and start asking, what kind of batteries does it have? What’s going on with this? X, Y and Z. They want to see it,” said Eily Ben-Abraham with Elite Event Robotics.

“And meanwhile, I’m, like, watching his flight, and I keep seeing online, ‘runway delay,'” said Chana Ben-Abraham with Elite Event Robotics.

In a statement, Southwest Airlines said Bebop’s lithium battery exceeded the airline’s maximum allowable size and was confiscated, leading to the delay.

Elite Event Robotics said it is now working to recover the battery before its next scheduled appearance.

Dustin Dorsey: “So, will Bebop be joining you on another flight then in the future?”

“He’ll be there on Sunday,” Chana Ben-Abraham said. “We’re overnighting batteries to Chicago tomorrow to hopefully be able to fulfill the next event request.”

“At the moment, we got him under 100 pounds, so I shouldn’t have to worry about actually, like, walking him through the terminals,” Eily Ben-Abraham said.

The delay ended, and the flight continued — leaving behind a travel story that could only be told in the Bay Area.