Singapore Airlines plane makes emergency landing in Istanbul

ISTANBUL - Doğan News Agency

DHA Photos

A Singapore Airlines plane flying to Singapore has made an emergency landing in Istanbul after running into a flock of storks. 

The Singapore-bound Boeing 777-200 took off from Istanbul Atatürk Airport at 1:30 p.m. on Aug. 17, with 255 passengers and 14 crew members aboard. 

The plane ran into a flock of storks while gaining altitude, damaging its radome, a weatherproof protective shield for its radar antenna. 

The collision also inflicted damage on various other parts of the plane, including an engine on its left-hand side.
 
An hour and ten minutes after taking off, the plane made an emergency landing in Istanbul at 2:40 p.m. 

The passengers were transferred to a hotel while Singapore Airlines reportedly arranged to bring another plane to Istanbul. 

Meanwhile, Turkish Airlines technical teams took the damaged Boeing to maintenance.