ANOTHER AIRCRAFT GROUNDED AFTER STRIKING BIRD
Just two days after US Airways Flight 1549 crashed into the Hudson River after striking two birds, an Arkansas hospital helicopter was grounded after a bird struck the aircraft, tearing a hole into the nose of the chopper. The pilot was forced to land the helicopter as a result. Thankfully, the helicopter landed safely. The pilot was slightly injured during the landing, but two other crew members on board were not.
The helicopter was returning from a hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, where the crew had taken a patient. It was heading back to Baptist Health Center in Little Rock, Arkansas when the bird hit the chopper and forced an early landing.
Federal aviation officials are investigating the incident but do not expect the helicopter to be grounded for long.
