Plane Departing John Glenn Airport Catches Fire Mid Air

Plane catches fire at Columbus airport after bird strikes engine 

A bird strike caused the engine of an American Airlines flight to catch fire, forcing pilots to turn around shortly after take-off and land the plane back at John Glenn Columbus International Airport early Sunday morning. Airport officials said American Airlines flight 1958 landed safely, no one was injured in the incident and the airport was shut down for only a few minutes while the plane returned for the emergency landing. An airport spokesperson couldn't say how many passengers were on flight. The plane left about 7:45 a.m. and was headed for Phoenix when birds struck the engine shortly after takeoff. Airport officials couldn't say how long the plane was in the air before rerouting back to the Columbus airport but it didn't make it out of the Central Ohio area. Sarah McQuaide, spokesperson for the Columbus airport, said the airport is open and operating as usual and the incident caused only minor delays for other flights. McQuaide said the incident will be investigated by federal officials. That could be officials from the Federal Aviation Administration or the National Transportation Safety Board. People across the Columbus area reported hearing strange engine sounds or seeing fire come from the plane's engine on social media. Source