To be fair, I don't see "check all hollow volumes for the presence of small stowaway mammals" in the pre-flight checklist:
http://flighttraining.aopa.org/students/presolo/skills/howtopreflight.html

A cat (or whatever) that doesn't want to be found probably isn't going to interfere with control surfaces working correctly, etc. This is exactly the kind of very infrequent, random event that human beings are likely to overlook when doing something like a routine check that comes back nominal 99.9% of the time.

So, I'd wager that the pilot probably did all of the checks correctly and they just failed to reveal the one-in-a-million chance of "cat in wing". And to swing the other direction a bit and praise him instead of admonishing, he was admirably cool as a cucumber while coming back in for a semi-emergency landing. So I guess I'd argue for "pilot win" instead of "pilot fail".

That lady is cool as a cucumber while the water level is at her mouth. Jeez.

Perfect parental reaction. Cool as a cucumber, keep filming. That boy has no reason to fear what just happened (beyond the evident slight discomfort) and will master that playground.

Humbra was as cool as a cucumber. I kinda thought he might just repeat his little drop trick a few more times and skeedaddle.

dude was cool as a cucumber throughout...

Think it was the TV-shaped messenger bag that gave him away? Couldn't have been his demeanor. He looked cool as a cucumber.

Just Plug Me In Just Like I Was Eddie Harris You're Eating Crazy
Cheese Like You'd Think I'm From Paris You Know I Get Fly You
Think I Get High You Know That I'm Gone And I'm A Tell You All Why
So Tell Me Who Are You Dissing Maybe I'm Missing The Reason That
You're Smiling or Wilding So Listen In My Head I Just Want To
Take 'em Down Imagination Set Loose And I'm Gonna Shake 'em
Down Let It Flow Like A Mud Slide When I Get On I Like To Ride And
Glide I've Got Depth Of Perception In My Text Y'all I Get Props At My
Mention 'Cause I Vex Y'All So What'cha Want You're So Funny With
The Money That You Flaunt Where'd You Get Your Information From
You Think That You Can Front When Revelation Comes

You Can't Front On That

Well They Call Me Mike D The Ever Loving Man I'm Like Spoonie Gee
I'm The Metropolitician You Scream And You Holler About My
Chevy Impala But The Sweat Is Getting Wet Around The Ring Around
Your Collar But Like A Dream I'm Flowing Without No Stopping
Sweeter Than A Cherry Pie With Ready Whip Topping Goin' From
Mic To Mic Kickin' It Wall To Wall Well I'll Be Calling Out You People
Like A Casting Call It's Wack When You're Jacked In The Back Of A
Ride With Your Know With Your Flow When You're Out Getting By
Believe Me What You See Is What You Get And You See Me Coming Off
As You Can Bet I Think I'm Losing My Mind This Time
This Time I'm Losing My Mind

You Can't Front On That

But Little Do You Know About Something That I Talk About I'm Tired
Of Driving It's Due Time That I Walk About But In The Meantime, I'm
Wise To The Demise I've Got Eyes In The Back Of My Head So I Realize
Well I'm Dr. Spock I'm Here To Rock Y'All I Want You Off The Wall
If You're Playing The Wall So What'cha Want Y'All Suckers Write Me
Checks And Then They Bounce So I Reach In My Pocket For The
Fresh Amount See I'm The Long Leaner Victor The Cleaner
I'm The Illest Motherfucker From Here To Gardena I'm As Cool As A
Cucumber In A Bowl Of Hot Sauce You've Got The Rhyme And Reason
But No Cause So If You're Hot To Trot You Think You're Slicker
Than Grease I've Got News For You Crews
You'll Be Sucking Like A Leach

[B-Real]
I got the big brown boots
when you wanna get kicked like a rhyme
from the heart and the mind
there was a time when the blunt got licked
I take a hit of the weed and then blew a smoke screen
No Visine just a little, Afro-Sheen
and a High Times magazine
I like to smoke y'all, but the pigs come sweating
they like the smell of the weed that I'm smoking
they can't have none of the number one sess-stash
So keep your hands off the hash
Don't act rash, cause if you move too fast
I'll pull out my gat and blast your sorry ass...

And you can kiss my ass, haha
That was the "M" to the "I" to the "K" to the "E" to the "D" y'all
Ghetto Block

Just Plug Me In Just Like I Was Eddie Harris
You're Eating Crazy Cheese Like You'd Think I'm From Paris
You Know I Get Fly You Think I Get High
You Know That I'm Gone And I'm A Tell You All Why
So Tell Me Who Are You Dissing Maybe I'm Missing
The Reason That You're Smiling or Wilding
So Listen In My Head I Just Want To Take 'em Down
Imagination Set Loose And I'm Gonna Shake 'em Down
Let It Flow Like A Mud Slide
When I Get On I Like To Ride And Glide
I've Got Depth Of Perception In My Text Y'all
I Get Props At My Mention 'Cause I Vex Y'All
So What'cha Want
I get So Funny With The Money That You Flaunt
I said Where'd You Get Your Information From Huh?
You Think That You Can Front When Revelation Comes

Yeh, You Can't Front On That

Well They Call Me Mike D The Ever Loving Man
I'm Like Spoonie Gee Well I'm The Metropolitician
You Scream And You Holler About My Chevy Impala
But The Sweat Is Getting Wet Around The Ring Around Your Collar
But Like A Dream I'm Flowing Without No Stopping
Sweeter Than A Cherry Pie With Ready Whip Topping
Goin' From Mic To Mic Kickin' It Wall To Wall
Well I'll Be Calling Out You People Like A Casting Call
Well It's Wack When You're Jacked In The Back Of A Ride
With Your Know With Your Flow When You're Out Getting By
Believe Me What You See Is What You Get
And You See Me I'm Coming Off As You Can Bet
Well I Think I'm Losing My Mind This Time
This Time I'm Losing My Mind
That's Right, Said I Think I'm Losing My Mind This Time
This Time I'm Losing My Mind

Yeh, You Can't Front On That

But Little Do You Know About Something That I Talk About
I'm Tired Of Driving It's Due Time That I Walk About
But In The Meantime, I'm Wise To The Demise
I've Got Eyes In The Back Of My Head So I Realize
Well I'm Dr. Spock I'm Here To Rock Y'All
I Want You Off The Wall If You're Playing The Wall
I said What'cha Want
Y'All Suckers Write Me Checks And Then They Bounce
So I Reach Into My Pocket For The Fresh Amount
See I'm The Long Leaner Vincent The Cleaner
I'm The Illest Motherfucker From Here To Gardena
I'm As Cool As A Cucumber In A Bowl Of Hot Sauce
You've Got The Rhyme And Reason But No Cause
Well If You're Hot To Trot You Think You're Slicker Than Grease
I've Got News For You Crews You'll Be Sucking Like A Leach

You Can't Front On That
So What'cha Want