An American Airlines flight flying from New York’s LaGuardia Airport to Charlotte Douglas International in North Carolina was forced to make an emergency landing at John F. Kennedy International Airport “due to a reported bird strike,” the airline confirmed to the Daily News.
The incident involving Flight 1722 happened just before 8 p.m. shortly after takeoff. Videos circulating online appear to show the exact moment when the bird flies into one of the jetliner’s engines.
The aircraft, an Airbus 321 carrying 190 passengers and six crew members, was immediately diverted to JFK, where it landed safely. No injuries were reported, according to the carrier.
Passengers received overnight hotel accommodations while the airline’s maintenance team inspected the aircraft. The flight was then rescheduled for departure early Friday morning, the airline said
According to data compiled by the flight data tracking platform FlightAware, American Airlines Flight 1722 departed at 8:30 a.m., about 12 hours after the scheduled time.
“We are grateful to our crew for their professionalism and apologize to our customers for the inconvenience this may have caused,” a company spokesperson told The News.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration, wildlife strikes with aircraft are increasing in the U.S. and abroad. Last year, approximately 19,400 strikes were reported in over 700 airports across the nation, with nearly 240 strikes involving U.S. carriers at foreign airports.
