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Air India's woes with rodent stowaways appear to be continuing after a rat was reportedly spotted on board a plane in the country's capital.

The plane was taken out of service and fumigated after it landed at New Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport from the city of Ranchi yesterday, the Times of India reported.

It is at least the fourth reported sighting on an Air India aircraft this year.

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Rats on a plane: There have been at least four rodent sightings on Air India flights this year

Earlier this month, cabin crew spotted rats scurrying free in the rear half of a plane as it landed at Indira Gandhi International Airport from Calcutta.

The Airbus A321 was carrying about 200 passengers and staff, and it was removed from service and taken to a remote airport bay to be fumigated. 

In May, the pilot on a flight from New Delhi to London reported a rat in the cockpit, the newspaper reported. But there are conflicting reports about whether a rat was actually on board.

Rats were blamed after a domestic flight from Mumbai suffered a two-hour delay in February. 

Planes must be fumigated even when there is an unconfirmed sighting because the rodents pose a serious threat to the safety of passengers and crew.

An Air India aircraft that flew from Ranchi to New Delhi had to be fumigated after a rat was reported on board

Rats can chew on electrical wires and disrupt computer systems aboard an aircraft. The rodents normally sneak onto aircraft via catering vehicles loaded with food.

Last year, health inspectors in China found nearly a dozen rats underneath a business class seat after a commercial flight landed at Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport from Hong Kong.

Inspectors wearing protective suits and masks boarded the plane and searched through overhead storage bins and behind seats.

In 2009, an Air India flight from Amritsar to Toronto was delayed for nearly half a day as staff tried to catch a rat that was spotted on board. The flight was delayed while a replacement aircraft was flown in.

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