A Russian Aeroflot Boeing 777-300 aircraft was stranded at Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) due to engine damage due to bird strikes. On Wednesday, November 24, Aeroflot flight SU-200, which took off from Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow, took off on runway 24L and collided with pigeons within six and a half hours to Beijing, China.
As there was no indication that the 3.5-year-old Boeing 777-300 aircraft registered as VP-BHA was damaged, the crew continued to fly and landed safely in the Chinese capital after a smooth flight.
Rosaviatsiya, the Russian federal agency responsible for overseeing the civil aviation industry in Russia, reported that about 8 to 10 pigeons were found on runway 24L in Sheremetyevo. A post-flight inspection of the aircraft engine revealed that the left engine had inhaled birds, causing damage to the two fan blades of the General Electric GE90 engine.
The air intakes and fairings, inner flaps, right wing and right main landing gear struts of the two engines were also damaged by bird strikes. According to the Aviation Herald, the plane is still on the ground at Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK).
Bird strike refers to the collision between birds and aircraft, posing a major risk to aviation safety. In the United States alone, it is estimated that there are more than 13,000 bird strikes each year. Most of these accidents caused little or no damage to the aircraft, but there have also been incidents in which both engines of American Airlines Flight 1549 failed and the aircraft had to make an emergency landing.
At about 3:30 pm on January 15, 2009, American Airlines Flight 1549, an Airbus A320, took off from LaGuardia Airport (LGA) in New York and bound for Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina (CLT). While climbing after taking off from LaGuardia, the plane hit a group of Canadian geese at an altitude of less than 3,000 feet.
Unlike the pigeon hit by Aeroflot 37, the A320 collided with a larger bird. The average weight of an adult Canadian goose is 12.5 pounds, while the average weight of a pigeon is about 10.5 ounces. In the collision with the goose, both engines of the A320 lost power, forcing the pilots Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger and Jeffrey Skiles to fly the plane like a glider.
Unable to return to LaGuardia or to Teterboro Airport (TEB) in New Jersey, the pilot decided to land the Hudson River plane in Midtown Manhattan. All 155 passengers on the ship were rescued by nearby ships, which is called the "miracle on the Hudson River."
The heroic and unique achievement of landing the plane safely on the water was later dramatized in Hollywood movies, with Tom Hanks playing the role of Chesley "Sally" Sully.
Have you ever been on an airplane that was hit by a bird? If so, please let us know in the comments.
Reporter-Mark is an experienced travel journalist who has published works in the industry for more than seven years. His enthusiasm and rich experience in aviation journalism give him excellent insight, and his work is cited by Forbes and other publications. Headquartered in Alicante, Spain.