Tripoli—An Afriqiyah Airways’ flight to Cairo was cut short Wednesday morning after hitting a bird during takeoff and returned safely to Tripoli Mitiga International Airport.
By the company said in a statement, “the pilot decided to return immediately in order to preserve the safety of passengers and the plane.”
The company confirmed in a statement that a bird hit one of the plane’s engines and the pilot decided to return immediately to airport to preserve the safety of passengers and the plane.
Technical maintenance teams immediately began conducting the necessary checks to assess the condition of the plane and address any potential damage, it added. Afriqiyah Airways was expected to resume its flight once the required technical procedures were completed.
Afriqiyah Airways expressed its appreciation to the passengers for their understanding and patience during those tense moments and circumstances.
In videos posted on social media, flames could be seen out of one of the engine as it returned to the airport. In one of the videos, a women and men can be heard making prayers and another woman saying that she was her first time flying by airplane.
In the middle of such noise, the pilot can be heard announcing that the plane would be returning to Mitiga airport as passengers felt relieved somehow and prayed for arriving safely.