There was panic at Entebbe International Airport on Tuesday morning after Istanbul –bound Turkish Airlines plane spent an hour and 20 minutes hovering in Ugandan airspace after taking off from the airport.
“Flight number 606 departed Entebbe at 7.30 am for Istanbul while it was raining. Unfortunately, the aircraft experienced a bird strike during take-off. As a precautionary measure, the flight hovered in the Ugandan airspace before landing safely at Entebbe at 08:52 am,” Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) said in a statement.
By the time of filing this story, the aircraft was being checked for airworthiness before resuming the flight, according to UCAA.
Asked whether the airport has a mechanism to scare away birds before take-off, the Authority’s spokesperson, Mr Vianney Luggya said: “There is a Bird Hazard unit at the airport, which undertakes a runway sweep (scaring away of birds) prior to any take-off or landing. That is how we have managed to reduce on instances of this nature in spite of Entebbe being a bird sanctuary.”
On Tuesday, January 10, 2023, a Turkish Airlines flight number 606 departed Entebbe at 7.30 am for Istanbul while it was raining. Unfortunately, the aircraft experienced a bird strike during take-off.
— Uganda CAA (@UgandaCAA) January 10, 2023
I actually heard this plane hover over our home thrice and I was wondering why so many flights were taking off within the same time period. Thought it was coz of bad weather.
It now makes sense.— CJ 💋🤍 (@JoyTuramuhawe) January 10, 2023
I actually got concerned. I could see its front gear lowered “something that isnt normal” and it circled for quite along time…
— Kyambadde Enock (@kyambadde_enock) January 10, 2023
