On landing in South Africa
Bird Strike: Propeller blade smashes more than just an airplane window
A British Aerospace BAE Jetstream 41 owned by Airlink, formerly in service with South African Airways.
© Imago Images
During the landing of a Jetstream 41, a bird got caught in one of the two propellers. Loose parts penetrated the fuselage. The first investigation report into the incident is now available. The bird could hardly have been bigger.
The plane-animal collision happened earlier this year on a charter flight from Johannesburg to the Venetia Mine, a diamond mine in northern South Africa. On landing, the Jetstream 41, a 29-passenger British Aerospace turboprop, collided with a larger bird, which caught the right-hand propeller.
The impact broke off one of the five rotor blades. The part penetrated the ship’s side at the level of row 3. Fortunately, the machine was not fully occupied. In addition to the crew of three, there were only four passengers on board. Can’t imagine what would have happened otherwise.
Seat in row 3: The jet stream cabin was damaged in several places by the loose propeller blade.
© SACAA
On January 4, the airline confirmed the incident: “Yesterday, an Airlink Jetstream 41 aircraft, operating a private charter flight, collided with a large bird while landing at Venetia aerodrome. None of the passengers or crew were injured, although the Aircraft sustained significant damage.”
After a month, the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA)published a “Preliminary Report”. In the 25-page report, the South African Aviation Authority’s flight accident investigators document the full extent of the damage: several impact points from the loose engine parts on the fuselage, the smashed cabin window and the destruction inside, as well as deformations on the engine gearbox and its mounting.
The crash at a speed of almost 200 km/h with a kori bustard, a kori bustard, is said to be the cause of the accident involving the aircraft, which was already on the ground. With a height of 130 centimetres, a wingspan of 2.75 meters and a weight of up to 19 kilograms, this bird, which occurs in southern Africa, is one of the largest birds capable of flying.
One of the four passengers was lucky in misfortune. For reasons of weight distribution, he was assigned a place in row 3 at the start. But during the flight he moved to the back of the cabin, which probably saved his life.
sources: www.caa.co.za and https://avherald.com
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