'Wildlife strike' forces United Airlines flight to make emergency landing, officials say
FILE - A United Airlines Boeing 757 departs Los Angeles International Airport en route to Denver on Sept. 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Carter/Getty Images)
A United Airlines flight headed to Canada from Colorado had to make an emergency landing on Sunday after striking an animal upon takeoff, officials said.
A rabbit allegedly struck the right engine of United Airlines flight 2325, according to an ABC News report.
What happened?
Dig deeper:
A United Airlines flight from Denver, Colorado, headed to Alberta, Canada, took off at about 7:08 p.m. on Sunday, according to KDVR.
Passengers recalled hearing a loud bang coming from the right side of the plane "like a gunshot," followed by "a massive vibration," KDVR reported.
What they're saying:
"Everything was normal. We boarded the plane in Denver, they did all their pre-check flight check stuff and they taxied us out into the start of the runway. They proceeded to get to speed and as soon as they rotated, there was a loud bang on the right-hand side of the plane, like a gunshot going off beside us, and then a massive vibration in the plane," Scott Wolff, a passenger, told KDVR.
The aircraft returned safely to the gate after being in flight for about 75 minutes and passengers were put on a new aircraft. There were no injuries reported.
Both United Airlines and the FAA confirmed to LiveNOW from FOX that the incident is being investigated.
What kind of plane was it?
There were approximately 159 people on board the Boeing 737-800 aircraft over the weekend.
The Source: Information for this article was gathered from reporting by KDVE and ABC News. Information from the FAA and United Airlines also contributed. This story was reported from Los Angeles.