Black Friday Sale! 50% Off All Access

American Airlines Plane Catches Fire Due to Bird Strike: 'The Engine Started Making Real Loud Noises' Video of the engine fire was captured on a passenger's cellphone.

By Sam Silverman

Entrepreneur+ Black Friday Sale

Our biggest sale — Get unlimited access to Entrepreneur.com at an unbeatable price. Use code SAVE50 at checkout.*

Claim Offer

*Offer only available to new subscribers

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

A Phoenix-bound American Airlines flight was derailed after the aircraft struck a flock of birds and disabled one of the engines onboard.

The incident took place on April 23 around 8 a.m., the Federal Aviation Administration told ABC News, less than 20 minutes after the plane departed from Ohio's John Glenn Columbus International Airport, according to Flight Aware.

Shortly after the fire, which was captured on video by passengers onboard, the plane returned back to the airport safely and was taken out of service. The FAA is investigating the incident, per ABC News.

RELATED: Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 Went Missing 9-Years-Ago With No Answers. Now Netflix Is Taking on the Mystery in 'The Plane That Disappeared'

According to NBC News, the Boeing 737-800 had 173 passengers and crew on board and was carrying 30,000 pounds of fuel. No injuries were reported.

The bird strike could be heard from inside the cabin, passenger John Fisher told NBC affiliate WCMH of Columbus.

"Apparently we struck a flock of geese and the engine started making real loud 'clonk, clonk, clonk' noises," he told the outlet. "They eventually turned the engine off and turned around and went back to the airport."

RELATED: 'Never Seen Anything Like This Before:' Severe Flooding Wreaks Havoc at Fort Lauderdale Airport With Planes Wading on the Tarmac and Buildings 'Sitting in Water'

According to the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, bird strikes are a "real and not uncommon danger" with 112,815 reported bird and wildlife strikes in the last 20 years, and 350 fatalities of U.S. passengers in the history of aviation.

Additionally, bird strikes cost the aviation industry $330 million and 500,000 hours of downtime per year.

Sam Silverman

Content Strategy Editor

Sam Silverman is a content strategy editor at Entrepreneur Media. She specializes in search engine optimization (SEO), and her work can be found in The US Sun, Nicki Swift, In Touch Weekly, Life & Style and Health. She writes for our news team with a focus on investigating scandals. Her coverage and expertise span from business news, entrepreneurship, technology, and true crime, to the latest in entertainment and TV news. Sam is a graduate of Lehigh University and currently resides in NYC. 

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Business News

'Father Time Always Wins': Warren Buffett, 94, Just Announced Major Changes to His Plan to Give Away His Money

Warren Buffett continued his Thanksgiving tradition with a $1.1 billion donation of Berkshire Hathaway stock to four of his family's foundations.

Business News

This Is What Black Friday and Holiday Shoppers Are Really Looking for This Season, According to New Research

Shopify's annual holiday survey revealed some surprising news about retail spending this holiday season.

Living

These Are the 'Wealthiest and Safest' Places to Retire in the U.S. None of Them Are in Florida — and 2 States Swept the List.

More than 338,000 U.S. residents retired to a new home in 2023 — a 44% increase year over year.

Growing a Business

They Went From Selling Hangers as Kids to Starting a Retail Brand Worth $100 Million – Here's What the Property Brothers Learned About Entrepreneurship

The kings of HGTV, Property Brothers Drew and Jonathan Scott, share their insights as lifelong entrepreneurs.

Business Ideas

63 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.