Excuse me if I'm skeptical about the cause...but i'd like to see the feathers...

Philadelphia flight to Los Angeles returned after bird ingested in engine

PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- A US Airways flight en route to Los Angeles returned to Philadelphia shortly after takeoff today when a bird was ingested into the plane's engine, an airport spokesman said. The problem happened shortly after 8:30 a.m. The engine was shut down and the plane returned to Philadelphia International Airport "within minutes," said Mark Pesce, an airport spokesman.

It wasn't immediately clear how many people were on the flight. No one was injured.

"It landed safely without problem," Pesce said. "Everything was secured immediately. The passengers were booked on other flights."

http://www.sacbee.com/news/calreport/calrep_story.cgi?N250.HTML

-- Carl Jenkins (Somewherepress@aol.com), February 22, 2000

Answers

Birds are a well known hazard. One the size of a Canada goose can do serious damage to airframe or an engine. A few years ago a Canadian pilot was killed by a Canada goose which came through the windshield. The aircraft was landed successfully by the co-pilot.

-- Roy (bushwhacker@ north woods.com), February 22, 2000.

I'm as skeptical as the next guy about all these flight incidents with the MD80 series stabilizer problems, porposing etc., but honestly folks, anyone in the airline industry would be able to tell you that emergency landings are more routine/common than you think. That is your flight crew doing their due diligence when there is any little indication that something *might* be wrong with the plane. Simple, precautionary measure...and anyone on that plane ought to be grateful for this occurence.

Where do I get my info from?...how about from multiple family members who have made their living in the air for the past 30 odd years.

-- (massdelusion@juno.com), February 22, 2000.

Oh sure, it was just a bird, just like the squirrels that knock out power to 100,000 homes. It was obviously a malfunctioning embedded chip.

-- Hawk (flyin@high.again), February 22, 2000.

Hey Massdelusion! Quit posting the same answer to multiple threads! That is SPAM!

Anyways, best friend worked for Nasa a couple years ago where they literally had a chicken cannon to fire into intake turbines to simulate bird damage and material performance. I LMAO every time I drive by a Kentucky Fried Chicken outlet to this day.

-- PA Engineer (PA Engineer@longtimelurker.com), February 22, 2000.

Kamikaze flying squirrels. Sure, they'll tell you it was a bird, but...

-- I'm Here, I'm There (I'm Everywhere@so.beware), February 23, 2000.

I'm Here, I'm There

I understand your point on the reliability of press releases, but if it was not poultry chow mein blowing out the back of the engine with pieces of turbine blades then there is one other possibility related to life cycle considerations on jet engines. According to my friend the mean time till failure (and replacement) of intake turbines is very questionable. You know, save a few dollars and fly a few more flights. Just don't be on the plane with the metal fatique caused cracks begin to propagate.

-- PA Engineer (PA Engineer@longtimelurker.com), February 23, 2000.

Hawk and "I'm Here",

being a longtimer here, I can often detect when other longtimers are pulling our leg. But I cringe everytime it happens, it is a subtle way to start flame wars.

FYI for the readers; Discovery Channel had an episode showing just how troublesome birds were to the aviation industry, and how in Vancouver they resorted to train dogs to chase birds away from the international airport. Canadian geese being major offenders but not the only ones by a long shot, as birds in general are attracted by the grassy flat stretches alongside runways, and the puddles/ponds of water that forms after rains. They showed jet engine badly destroyed when such birds were sucked in; the blades inside were twisted and flattened. They said birds cost the industry many millions in repairs, canceled flights etc., each year.

-- Chris (*#$%^@pond.com), February 23, 2000.

Aaaw shucks, ya caught me Chris! :-)

It's fun watching the trolls get irate!

-- Hawk (flyin@high.again), February 23, 2000.

Birdstrikes are a real cause of fatal accidents and returning to the airport is the smart way to react to one. The only crash of an E-3 AWACS aircraft was caused when the plane ingested several geese during its takeoff from Elmendorf AFB, Alaska. I knew one of the guys on that plane that day.

Philly Intl is located on the Delaware River, a prime wintering area for many species of birds. And birds are a published hazard at this time of year for aircraft operating anywhere in the Philly area.

At nearby McGuire AFB, NJ I witnessed one duck do over a million dollars worth of damage to a New York Air National Guard C-5A when that duck went into an engine during a takeoff. The duck was one of six that the plane hit. Five hit the wing and bounced dead on to the runway. One became a real life "million dollar duck".

Besides holes in the engine cowling where three turbine blades broken by "duck impact" came flying out, the crew had to contend with a small engine fire and severe vibration as the engine chewed itself to pieces. There weren't many feathers left but some of the hard parts, like bill and bone, were found stuck into some of the engine parts.

WW

-- Wildweasel (vtmldm@epix.net), February 23, 2000.