This is how «Maverick» got its name
“Captain Airport”, “Delta Charlie”, “Tig Air” or “Fly”: There was a wide choice of names for the airport cat, who is over twelve years old. Many listeners took part in RADIO BERN1’s search and finally decided on the name “Maverick”, based on the Hollywood film “Top Gun”.
Fabienne Thöni from Bleiken had the idea for the name. In a vote about two weeks ago, she received over 50 percent of the votes for the suggestion. She is now the cat’s official “godmother” and has crocheted a blanket for him, as you can see in the video.
Fabienne Thöni is a caretaker at the Bleiken school and explains why she wanted to name the airport cat “Maverick”. “My husband’s favourite film is ‘Top Gun’. He must have seen it a hundred thousand times.” In the film, the main character, played by Tom Cruise, wears a helmet with the inscription “Maverick”.
Cats at the airport more often
Cats on and in the airport have been a tradition since 1996, explains airport CEO Urs Ryf. The first airport cat to get hit by a car and die was called Fritz – “Maverick” is also often called by this name.
Ryf said he has been working at the airport for five years now and sees the cat every day. The cat has decided to live at the airport, almost like Tom Hanks in the film “Terminal”. Specifically, the cat sleeps in the information center, which is manned around the clock.
Büsi now officially belongs to the airport
Due to the media response to the “airport cat,” the cat’s original owners have come forward and have even sent the vaccination certificate by post to Bern-Belp Airport. This means that “Maverick” now officially belongs to the airport.
But he won’t let anyone take away his freedom, as was shown on Tuesday. The cat skilfully skipped his baptism.
