An American Airlines flight was forced to return to its airport after takeoff on Sunday morning in Columbus, Ohio for what is believed to have been a bird strike that may have sparked an engine fire.
The plane was a Boeing 737 and departed from Columbus, headed toward Phoenix, at around 8 a.m. local time before the crew reported the possible bird strike, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
The FAA shared that the flight was able to return to the John Glenn Columbus International Airport without any issues, landing safely.
The airport released a statement about the incident on its Twitter account.
“Emergency crews responded to an aircraft incident at CMH this morning involving a reported engine fire. The aircraft landed safely, and the airport is open and operational,” the statement said.
However, it was later corrected to say there was a “mechanical issue,” not an engine fire.
American Airlines also released a statement, saying the plane had a “mechanical issue,” causing it to return to the Columbus airport.
“The flight landed normally and taxied safely to the gate under its own power. The aircraft was taken out of service for maintenance, and our team is working to get customers back on their way to Phoenix,” the American Airlines statement said.
The incident is currently being investigated by the FAA.
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