A passenger jet that struck a bird during takeoff was left significantly damaged and smeared in blood.
Latam Airlines confirmed its flight LA3367, which was departing from Rio de Janiero en route to São Paulo, struck a bird as it took off around 10:35 a.m. on Feb. 20. Substantial damage to the plane’s nose caused it to return to the airport. The flight returned at 11:04 a.m., Agência Brasil reported, and the flight was subsequently canceled.
According to Latam CEO Jerome Cadier, no one was injured and the flight returned safely to Rio.
Photos of the plane show the damaged nose — a massive hole, caving into the front — and a smaller dent where long blood streaks start.
In a statement, the airline shared its policy to adopt all safety measures possible, and apologized to the impacted passengers.
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“LATAM regrets the inconvenience caused and informs that it is offering the necessary assistance to all impacted customers, who will be re-accomodated on the company’s flights scheduled for today and tomorrow (Feb. 20 and 21),” the statement read.
In a post shared on LinkedIn, Cadier expressed his frustration with the incident — both in “disrupting the lives of all the passengers” and the impending financial impact on the airline.
“And so Brazilian aviation continues… the question is: who pays the bill?” Cadier wrote.
The incident follows several high-profile aviation accidents in recent weeks, which all varied in nature.
A Delta airlines flight crash-landed in Toronto on Monday, Feb. 17 and rolled over on the runway. All 80 passengers and crew on board were successfully evacuated. The cause of the incident is currently under investigation by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada.
Two weeks earlier, on the night of Jan. 29, an American Airlines plane and an Army helicopter collided in mid-air near Reagan Airport in Washington, D.C. A total of 67 people died in the accident.
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