A TUI flight bound for Cyprus from the UK was forced to divert after a "bird strike" emergency was declared onboard.
The Boeing 737, flight TOM 6754, was en route to Paphos in Cyprus when the incident happened at 4.30pm on Sunday, shortly after take-off from Cardiff. The flight was subsequently rerouted to Birmingham.
Birmingham Airport suspended operations while emergency services prepared to meet the aircraft upon its arrival. Flight maps reveal that the plane circled Swansea Bay at roughly 3,000ft before ascending to 12,000ft and heading towards the West Midlands for landing. The news comes as a flight attendant's horror death as she was sucked out of plane mid-flight.
Passengers and crew were safely evacuated after the aircraft burned fuel circling prior to landing at 5.30pm. The plane was greeted on the runway by four fire engines and other emergency vehicles.
A spokesperson for TUI confirmed that the incident was caused by birds near Cardiff Airport during the plane's take-off. The diversion was implemented as a precautionary measure, reports the Mirror.
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They stated: "To confirm, there was no engine failure. There was a bird strike after take-off and the diversion that followed was a precautionary routine procedure."
A representative for Cardiff Airport said: "We are aware of an incident involving flight TOM6754 from Cardiff to Paphos. The safety of our passengers is our number one priority. The aircraft diverted to Birmingham Airport (BHX) and landed safely at approximately 17:30."
Last month, Birmingham Airport was thrown into chaos as all flights were grounded for several hours due to an 'incident with a light aircraft' on the runway, resulting in one person being injured.
Numerous planes were redirected from the airport on 5 August, while others faced significant delays.
At 2.48pm, the official Twitter account of Birmingham Airport announced that its runway had been closed.
Two hours later, security and check-in services were also shut down.
A photograph from the scene depicted a white light-aircraft surrounded by emergency vehicles on the runway.
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West Midlands Police confirmed that one individual had sustained minor injuries following an emergency landing by a small aircraft at the airport.
The force stated: "We are at Birmingham Airport this afternoon after a small aircraft was involved in an emergency landing at around 1.40pm."
The Mirror has reached out to TUI for a response.