Etihad flight to Abu Dhabi cancelled following suspected bird strike

Abu Dhabi: An Etihad Airways flight (EY146) from Geneva to Abu Dhabi, originally scheduled to depart on 10.40am on September 22, was delayed and subsequently cancelled due to routine maintenance.

These checks come after a "suspected bird strike" according to an update from the airline.

The airline apologised for the disruption and said that teams are "doing their best" to assist passengers with travel arrangements.

Etihad advised customers to make sure their contact details are up-to-date to ensure they receive the latest flight information. Passengers can visit the official website to check their contact information.

For queries, customers can contact the airline through phone, social media, or live chat. Bird strikes are not an isolated phenomenon, and is more common than flyers may think. These generally occur at lower altitudes and in the day due to the greater number of birds during daylight and at lower heights.

Earlier this month, an Etihad flight from Colombo to Abu Dhabi returned to the Sri Lankan destination after a bird strike.

After inspection, the same aircraft later took off from Colombo with all the passengers and landed in Abu Dhabi, following a nearly 5-hour delay, the airline earlier confirmed to Khaleej Times.

On May 20, an Emirates Dubai-Mumbai aircraft hit a flock of flamingos about 300 metres (1,000ft) above the ground.

At least 36 flamingos were killed in the incident, according to reports by Indian media, though wildlife experts said they feared many more might be dead.

While all passengers and crew remained safe, the aircraft was damaged, and the return flight, which had been scheduled to depart for Dubai the same day, was cancelled.

-B