Bird strike grounds Norwegian flight in Arctic Finland
The budget airline Norwegian said Friday that a passenger plane flew into a bird or birds while coming in for a landing at the Rovaniemi airport in northern Finland Friday afternoon. The aircraft was able to land normally.
Although the landing was otherwise uneventful the aircraft was not able to continue on its journey back to Helsinki before an inspection and subsequent safety clearance.
The airline was forced to send a mechanic out to Rovaniemi from Helsinki.
Up to 4.00pm on Friday passengers said they had no information about when they would be able to resume their journey, which was supposed to be at 3.20pm. According to the websites of airports operator Finavia and Norwegian, the plane was schedule to resume the journey at 7.00pm.
However later in the afternoon, around 5.25pm, the captain of the flight told passengers that the mechanic was not able to travelto Rovaniemi on a Finnair flight.
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: Surveillance and search and rescue top Canada’s Arctic defence priorities, Radio Canada International
Finland: Helsinki, Finland set to become world’s busiest sea passenger port, Yle News
Norway: Longer runway for bigger planes in Kirkenes, northern Norway, The Independent Barents Observer
Russia: Passenger numbers skyrocket at remote airport in Russian Arctic, The Independent Barents Observer
Sweden: Swedish city of Umeå paves the way for green electric bus revolution, The Independent Barents Observer
United States: Federal agency to investigate ‘avoidable’ plane crashes in Alaska, Alaska Dispatch News
