Swarm of bees attacks passenger plane in Moscow

Passengers were left alarmed after a swarm of bees attacked a plane at a Moscow airport.

The Airbus-319 was about to start taxiing for takeoff from Vnukovo Airport to St Petersburg when the critters flew up from below the wing.

According to the Metro, some of the bees covered a wing, while others attached themselves to the windows of the Rossiya Airline plane.

Two ambulances were called to the scene in case the bees managed to get inside the cabin.

The Daily Mail reports that airport staff then "quickly and efficiently" removed the bees from the plane's fuselage, although it is not clear exactly how they did this.

The flight was delayed for around an hour as a result of the incident.

The news comes just a week after a man was stung to death by bees in Arizona.

John Wade, 81, was looking after a property in Valle Vista when he was attacked by a hive of Africanized bees.

The Mohave County Sheriff's Office said he died in hospital after the attack.

According to AZ Central, he was stung between 500 and 1,000 times.

Beekeeper Johnnie Hoeft was called to the scene and said the hive was inside an old tool cabinet in a shed.