A United Airlines flight which took off from the Denver International Airport for Canada's Edmonton, was forced to return to Denver, and made an emergency landing due to fire in one of its engines.
The fire was reportedly due to the engine striking an animal, possibly a rabbit. The incident occurred shortly after the flight departed on Sunday.
"It looks like you got, every once in awhile, little bursts of flame coming out the right engine,” an air traffic controller communicated to the flight crew over the radio, according to news agency AP.
“We think we lost our right motor,” a crew member replied.
On being told it was a rabbit which apparently got sucked into the engine, the pilot responded, "Rabbit through the number 2, that'll do it."
United Flight 2325, being operated by a Boeing 737-800, was carrying 153 passengers and six crew members, Denver International Airport said in a statement, adding that there were no reports of injuries.
The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the cause of the fire.
Animals, particularly birds, hitting airplanes isn't uncommon, with nearly 20,000 strikes reported in 2023, according to an FAA report. In the most extreme cases over the years, collisions with wildlife killed 76 people and destroyed 126 aircraft between 1988 and 2023 in the United States.
The fire was reportedly due to the engine striking an animal, possibly a rabbit. The incident occurred shortly after the flight departed on Sunday.
"It looks like you got, every once in awhile, little bursts of flame coming out the right engine,” an air traffic controller communicated to the flight crew over the radio, according to news agency AP.
#Breaking Cabin footage of a United B-737 "landing an emergency after reportedly hitting a rabbit on departure from Denver. Video from inside the cabin showed large flames shooting from the engine". Updates when possible. 📹@aviationbrk pic.twitter.com/aiRrHizhPS
— Air Safety #OTD by Francisco Cunha (@OnDisasters) April 16, 2025
“We think we lost our right motor,” a crew member replied.
On being told it was a rabbit which apparently got sucked into the engine, the pilot responded, "Rabbit through the number 2, that'll do it."
United Flight 2325, being operated by a Boeing 737-800, was carrying 153 passengers and six crew members, Denver International Airport said in a statement, adding that there were no reports of injuries.
A United Airlines flight operated by a Boeing 737-824 aircraft was forced to return back to Denver (DEN) after an engine fire that was reportedly caused by a rabbit strike on 13 April.
— FL360aero (@fl360aero) April 16, 2025
The Federal Aviation Administration is probing the reported wildlife strike in Denver… pic.twitter.com/ytvFeJIbyz
The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the cause of the fire.
Animals, particularly birds, hitting airplanes isn't uncommon, with nearly 20,000 strikes reported in 2023, according to an FAA report. In the most extreme cases over the years, collisions with wildlife killed 76 people and destroyed 126 aircraft between 1988 and 2023 in the United States.
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