- Dramatic video shows the moment a Magnicharters 737-300 lost an engine after striking a bird during takeoff.
- The flight, from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, to Mexico City, struck the bird seconds after leaving the ground.
- The plane returned to Puerto Vallarta and landed safely – no one on board was injured.
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A YouTube video that’s been circulating online shows the moment a Boeing 737-300 jet struck a bird while taking off.
The video shows a jet from Magnicharters, a Mexican airline and travel-package agency, taking off from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, for Flight 801 to Mexico City on July 14.
The video, uploaded by website AirLive, shows what appears to be a normal takeoff as the plane rolls down the runway and begins to ascend. Several seconds later, a series of loud bangs and a whining sound can be heard before the sound of the No. 2 engine on the right side of the plane shutting down. As the camera focuses on the engine, a small amount of smoke is briefly visible.
At around 35 seconds, the pilot can be heard asking passengers to remain seated, clarifying that the plane hit a bird. Passengers and crew appear to be calm throughout the video.
The plane returned to Puerto Vallarta and landed safely, according to Multimedios. No one on board was injured.
Bird strikes are rare but can happen while aircraft are at lower altitudes, where birds fly. The engines on commercial aircraft are designed to withstand at least one bird, and all commercial planes can fly with just one functioning engine, making accidents caused by bird strikes exceptionally rare. In most cases, planes can simply increase power to the remaining engine or engines and return to the airport.
One high-profile bird strike was the 2009 "Miracle on the Hudson." US Airways Flight 1549 struck a flock of geese and consequently lost both engines while departing New York's LaGuardia airport. Unable to fly to any airport, pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger famously guided the plane to an emergency landing on the Hudson River. All 155 people on board survived, with only several injuries reported.
