Bird strikes force down Ryanair plane
Wednesday, 12 November 2008 12:00 AM
Airport passenger with luggage
A Ryanair flight from Frankfurt has been forced to make an emergency landing in Rome, after birds struck the plane on descent.
Three passengers and two crew were taken to hospital with minor injuries, according to company spokesman Stephen McNamara.
There were 166 people on board the flight at the time of the incident.
Mr McNamara explained the plane had been hit by "multiple bird strikes", sucking them into the engines, as it approached to land at Ciampino airport in Italy.
Italy's civil aviation agency ENAC said the Boeing 737 landed safely just before 08:00 on Monday - but a collapse of the plane's landing gear has made its removal difficult.
Passengers left the plane through emergency shoots and were left shaken by the incident.
Passenger Gaetano De Caro told reporters after the event: "We were coming in to land and all of a sudden there was this burning smell. Then we bumped on to the runway and that gave us a big fright, but the pilot did really well.
"I have to say thank you to him because he saved our lives.
"If someone else had been at the wheel we would all be dead now because we were getting close to that wall at the end of the runway. All the staff did a really good job."
Chris O'Toole
