Russian airplane in dramatic crash touchdown after engine fireplace as passengers injured
A Russian Ural Airlines plane was hit by a bird strike mid-air
A RUSSIAN plane carrying 233 people has been forced to land in a field after a dramatic engine fire.
The Ural Airlines jet was struck by a bird mid-air near Rybaki.
It was then forced to land on a field around three miles from where it was supposed to land at Zhukovsky Airport.
A source said: “The plane landed on its belly in a field near the village of Rybaki, which is some 3-5 km away from the runway of the Zhukovsky airport.”
HORROR: More than 20 passengers were injured in the emergency landing(Image: TASS/GETTY)
MALFUNCTION: Birds had flown into both engines before the landing(Image: REUTERS)
It has injured at least 23 people, according to reports.
The airline said birds got into both of the plane’s engines and caused a malfunction.
Among those injured are five children.
An official from the Federal Air Transport Agency said: “Shortly after takeoff, the aircraft struck a flock of gulls, some of the birds were sucked into its engines.
“The emergency landing took place on a cornfield less than one kilometer away from the airport’s runway.
PANIC: Passengers were forced off the plane after its emergency landing(Image: GETTY/TASS)
“There was no fire on board. The crew used inflatable escape slides to evacuate the passengers.”
Ural Airlines Director General Sergei Skuratov added: “An emergency landing was performed by a plane taking off from Zhukovsky.
“The incident was caused by ingestion of birds into both of the engines.
“The engines turned off, the crew performed a landing about one kilometer away from the runway.
“The landing was done properly, the plane did not catch fire, all passengers were evacuated. No one was killed or injured.”
