One Minute After Takeoff, a Sudden 'Bang'... What Happened to the Chinese Plane Carrying 169 People?

Engine Damage Due to Bird Strike... Emergency Return Flight

According to Chinese media Shangyou News on the 4th, a domestic passenger plane in China collided with a bird shortly after takeoff and made an emergency return.

According to the media, on the 1st at around 8:45 PM, a West Air PN6444 passenger plane departing from Nanning in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and heading to Chongqing collided with birds shortly after takeoff. There were 169 passengers on board the plane.

China Western Airlines passenger plane. [Image source=Yonhap News, Weibo]

The captain said, "At that time, the altitude was about 900 meters, and it was about one minute after takeoff. I saw a flock of birds passing by, and the aircraft shook with a 'bang' sound."

The passenger plane made an emergency return to Nanning Airport shortly afterward.

An airline official stated, "The flight collided with birds shortly after takeoff, causing engine damage, but it safely returned to protect the safety of the passengers."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.