‘I love you': Terror as plane loses nose after collision
The jet was carrying 182 passengers and crew when it reportedly struck one of the world's largest birds head on, before what was believed to be a vulture was sucked into the engine turbine.
An emergency was declared by the pilots of Iberia flight IB579 only minutes after it had departed the Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport in Spain, full of holidaymakers en route to Paris-Orly on Sunday.
After reaching a height of 6,500 feet, the Airbus jet collided with the bird, which smashed the radome that houses the weather radar.
Social media imagery released by the airline and airport shows the extent of the damage, with exposed electricals and radar equipment, plus the damaged engine rotors.
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The Sun reports the plane is a state-of-the-art Airbus A321NEO XLR, one of the most modern in the world, and had only just been introduced into the Iberia fleet.
Videos posted on social media show passengers grasping for oxygen masks that were deployed as the cabin began to fill with smoke, as emergency protocals were engaged.
'We couldn't breathe,' one woman said as the crew signalled their intention to immediately return to their departure point.
'The crew of the flight departing from Madrid-Barajas to Paris informs us of impact with bird. They request to return to Barajas in an emergency,' another passenger said.
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The flight was given priority landing and directed to runway 32L, where fire crews and emergency responders were waiting.
Passengers disembarked via the regular stairs after landing around 25 minutes after takeoff and no injuries were reported.
Air traffic controllers praised the crew's calm and professional behaviour, saying the incident 'was a scare' but highlighted the tension onboard.
In one video posted on social media soon after the incident @mario.hdez17 wrote in Spanish: 'You never know when the last time you can say thank you, sorry, and I love you will be. So if you're hesitating, do it.'
The plane jet has been grounded for repair by Iberia which has only recently launched the A321XLR on shorter European routes to train crews ahead of long-haul deployments across the Atlantic.
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