By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2024-12-13 22:21:57 | Updated at 2024-12-24 12:29:48
1 week ago
An airplane passenger captured the terrifying moment a bird flew into the jet's engine during takeoff in New York City, forcing it to make an emergency landing.
The American Airlines flight from LaGuardia Airport to Charlotte departed around 7:45pm Thursday.
But shortly after takeoff, a bird flew into the engine on the plane's right side, causing it to briefly burst into flames, the passenger's video showed.
'The aircraft landed safely at JFK where it will be inspected by our maintenance team,' American Airlines said in a statement.
'We are grateful to our crew for their professionalism and apologize to our customers for the inconvenience this may have caused.'
None of the 190 passengers and six crew members suffered injuries.
All of the travelers onboard were given hotel accommodations and a scheduled re-departure for Friday morning.
Passenger Amy Stamper recounted the moment to the New York Post.
The American Airlines flight from LaGuardia Airport to Charlotte departed around 7:45pm Thursday, but shortly after takeoff a bird flew into the engine on the plane's right side, causing it to briefly burst into flames
'I was scared. I thought I was gonna die,' she said.
'There were a couple of small explosions. And there was a fire.'
Father-of-two Eric Halili, 43, who was visiting New York for work added: 'I think that was a very traumatic experience and what made it worse was that we had to wait over an hour to get our bags. You just wanted the day to end and it just didn't end.'
Another terrified male traveler added: 'I was right by the wing and I saw it. I saw two flames in the sky. I thought I was gonna die. I prayed. I thought I was gonna die for about 30 seconds.'
Another passenger, Misleidy, 26, and her new husband were on their way back home to Florida through Charlotte after spending their honeymoon in New York when the incident happened.
'I actually missed my first plane. This is the second one. It's what God had in store,' she said.
'There were people who were scared. I was a little scared … It kind of felt like how a car would backfire. Rocking a little. At first I didn't think much of it. But then I saw other people [reacting] around me and thought, "This might be bad."'
She added that flight attendants were very helpful in calming down distressed flyers.
None of the 190 passengers and six crew members suffered injuries
The jet ended up landing safely and without incident at John F. Kennedy International Airport a little after 8pm
American Airlines later said in a statement: 'The aircraft landed safely at JFK where it will be inspected by our maintenance team. 'We are grateful to our crew for their professionalism and apologize to our customers for the inconvenience this may have caused'
The Federal Aviation Administration has said it is investigating the incident.
The agency said that bird strikes have been increasing, with 19,400 strikes at 713 airports across the US last year alone, according to AP.
This comes months after another American Airlines flight from Boston to Rochester was forced to make an emergency landing after smoke was spotted in the cabin.
The flight was forced to land at Syracuse Hancock International Airport in Syracuse, New York, following the incident.
The plane, an Embraer RJ145, landed without incident and was taxied to the gate by the airports fire and rescue teams.
