Jet Is Forced to Land After Hitting Bird
A TWA jetliner with 112 passengers on board struck a bird Thursday, ripping a two-foot hole in the plane’s nose and forcing an emergency landing.
The Boeing 727 bound for St. Louis made a safe landing at Tampa International Airport shortly before 11 a.m.
“It hit a bird of some sort--apparently a goose,” airport spokesman Paul MacAlester said.
Flight 399 originated in Sarasota and the plane was climbing after a stop in Ft. Myers when the collision occurred.
Most passengers weren’t aware of the collision until they left the plane, but a few said they heard a thud.
“You could hear something happen,” Barbara Bowers said. “It was pretty scary.”
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