It's the baggage with bite — a crocodile on the loose in the cargo hold of a Qantas aircraft.

Qantas has confirmed a crocodile escaped from its cage during a flight between Brisbane and Melbourne.

Although the jaws of a crocodile could have been a nasty find for the baggage handler who discovered it was on the loose, the reptile was safely re-captured without drama.

A Qantas spokesman confirmed the incident happened last Monday.

He was unsure of the crocodile's size, but said it "was not fully grown".