Airport alert after plane hit by bird strike

The bird strike caused engine damage to the plane, an Airbus 319 carrying 156 passengers and crew, but it landed safely.

Crews from Luton, Stopsley and Bedford were called to the airport just before 7pm on Friday (August 17).

A resident who contacted the Luton News said he had witnessed the plane flying over his garden as it came in to land.

He said: “The sound was the strangest I have ever heard.”

The fire service response included an aerial ladder platform, a water carrier and foam unit.

A spokesman for Beds Fire and Rescue said: “We got the call saying a plane was in trouble so we sent appliances but it turned out that it landed safely and we weren’t required to take any action.”

The plane was escorted to the airport’s stand-by fire service.