A Spirit Airlines A320neo struck a coyote on the runway when departing Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport on January 13th. The plane was leaving the Texas hub to head for Florida’s Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.
Turning things around
According to The Aviation Herald, registration N922NK was performing flight NK-264 and the strike happened on Houston’s runway 15L. The crew stopped the aircraft’s climb at 16,000 feet. The plane then returned to its departing airport for a safe landing on runway 27 after approximately 35 minutes after initially talking off.
The A320 left for the skies again after an hour and a half on the airport’s ground. The flight then eventually landed at Fort Lauderdale with a delay of approximately 100 minutes.
Unknown damage
The amount of damage that the plane received is still to be confirmed. According to The Aviation Herald, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) merely shared the following statement about the event so far:
“Aircraft Struck a coyote during departure, Houston, TX.”
According to Planespotters.net, N922NK, the aircraft involved in Houston, arrived at Spirit’s holdings in December 2019. It was produced at Mobile, Alabama with Manufacturer Serial Number (MSN) 9341 and was delivered fresh from Airbus, making it just over a year old. The plane is joined by 95 other A320s, along with 31 A319s, and 30 A321s currently in the ultra-low-cost carrier’s fleet.
Crucial incidents
Altogether, animal strikes are a regular occurrence for airlines across the globe, but most incidents revolve around birds. Nonetheless, it is not uncommon for ground-based wildlife to be hit by an aircraft. Bears, boars, and skunks are just some of the animals that have been hit over the last year by different carriers.
These incidents cause a sad loss of life for wildlife. They can also cause significant damage to aircraft and be potentially dangerous to those onboard. Crews subsequently have to make important calls following such events to determine the best course of action.
There haven’t been any reports of injuries to those on the aircraft following this week’s incident.
Simple Flying reached out to Spirit Airlines for comment on the strike in Houston this week. We will update the article with any further announcements from the airline.
What are your thoughts about this Spirit Airlines Airbus A320neo hitting a coyote when leaving Houston? Have you experienced anything similar when flying over the years? Let us know what you think of the incident in the comment section.