Sunday morning around 8 a.m., American Airlines flight 1958 scheduled from Columbus John Glenn Airport (CMH) to Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport (PHX) diverted back to Columbus shortly after takeoff. Reports are that the plane struck a flock of geese shortly after takeoff. This caused the right engine to catch on fire and eventually be shut down. The plane diverted back to CMH and there were no injuries reported to any of the passengers or crew.
Plane Strikes Flock of Geese – Engine Catches on Fire
There were a few reports on Twitter that I saw from people both on the ground and on the plane
American Airlines 737 returns to Columbus Airport after striking a number of geese on departure. AA1958 to Phoenix landed back safely 25 minutes after takeoff. pic.twitter.com/ws3wi3Cl9D
— Breaking Aviation News & Videos (@aviationbrk) April 23, 2023
And
Omg. This is amazing that they made it back.early this morning I was outside and heard the jet. I am familiar with how jet engine sound.i ran to front lawn and seen the plane and fire pulsing out of engine I was panic stricken with fear for the plane.thankyou for update.
— cryptgrrl (@cryptgrrl26202) April 23, 2023
And
Scariest moment of my life. The entire crew was amazing at keeping everyone calm and getting the plane safely down. I am so grateful for them!
— HunterJ (@_hunter_j3) April 23, 2023
Plane Rescheduled
Looking at Flightaware, it looks like the flight eventually took off at 3:30 p.m. on its way to Phoenix – I would have to assume that American Airlines sent a different plane to operate the flight :-). At the time I’m writing this post, the second flight
The Bottom Line
An American Airlines Boeing 737-800 plane bound for Phoenix from Columbus struck a flock of geese shortly after takeoff, causing an engine fire and forcing the plane to be diverted. Thankfully the plane was able to land safely with no injuries to the passengers or crew.
(Featured image not of the actual plane in question)
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It didn’t “catch on fire”. The compressor stalled as a result of the bird strike. The engine was shut down and the plane landed safely.