An Air India flight from Delhi carrying 164 passengers suffered a bird strike while landing at Patna airport on Monday morning, marking the second such incident involving the airline at Jay Prakash Narayan Airport within a week.
Flight AI 1741 landed safely at 7.43 am, after which airport authorities activated emergency landing procedures as a precaution. Fire and other emergency services were deployed following the pilot's report of a suspected bird strike near the aircraft's right turbine.
Aircraft cleared after safety checks
An inspection carried out after the landing confirmed that the aircraft had been hit by a bird, but officials found no damage to the engine.
The aircraft was subsequently cleared for its return journey to Delhi after completing the mandatory checks.
The return flight, AI 1852, was carrying 160 passengers. It departed at 10.09am, around 79 minutes later than its scheduled departure time of 8.45am.
Rashtriya Janata Dal Rajya Sabha member Manoj Jha, who was scheduled to travel on the flight, changed his plans and took the afternoon Air India service AI 2524 instead.
Bird and animal activity raises concerns
The latest incident comes amid concerns over increasing bird and animal activity around Patna airport.
During a routine inspection before flight operations began on Sunday, officials found the remains of a bat weighing around 1.5kg on the runway. People familiar with the matter said no flight had reported a bird strike the previous evening.
Another Air India Delhi-Patna flight suffered a bird strike on August 17. The aircraft remained grounded for two days while maintenance engineers arrived from Delhi to carry out repairs. It was later cleared for operations following inspection and approval from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.
Monsoon adds to bird-hit risk
Officials said bird activity around airports can increase during the monsoon because grass along runways grows rapidly. Mowing can also attract birds by exposing insects.
The Airports Authority of India has deployed chasers equipped with firearms and firecrackers to keep birds away from operational areas.
Officials have also identified meat shops in the Phulwarisharif area around the airport as a continuing challenge because they could attract birds.
Civil aviation rules require airports to maintain Wildlife Hazard Management Plans covering measures such as bird control, habitat management, insect control and other steps to reduce wildlife-related risks to aircraft.