An Air Canada flight with 170 passengers on board made a safe emergency landing in Ottawa on Thursday after hitting a flock of birds on short final. Passengers reported hearing a loud bang and the left engine of the aircraft (type unknown) shut down about 30 seconds before touchdown just before 1 a.m. Airport emergency equipment responded and surrounded the aircraft on the runway before it was cleared to the gate after about an hour. The plane was damaged and has been taken out of service.
“As per our operating procedures airport services were called.“The flight landed safely and no one was hurt,” an airline spokeswoman told the Ottawa Citizen. Passengers took to social media to praise the crew’s handling of the mishap. “Bit of a hairy landing @FlyYOW tonight after hitting some birds but hats off to the @AirCanada pilots & crew for keeping everything under control,” said one tweet. “Landed safely & then sat on the runway for awhile as a safety precaution before being towed to the gate.”