A woman who tried to sneak onto a plane with a four-foot boa constrictor smuggled in her hand luggage was banned from the flight.

When the reptile called Bartholemew was spotted by security staff on the airport’s x-ray machine, she told them it was a ‘support snake’.

However, she was not allowed to board the flight from Tampa, Florida.

The US Transportation Security Administration said no airline allows snakes in the cabin, but some will allow them to be put in the hold, if declared and correctly packaged.