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Officials have confirmed that a FedEx plane was forced into an emergency landing at Newark Airport early Saturday after a birdstrike caused an engine fire.
The flight had just taken off from the airport in New Jersey when the birdstrike occurred. A video circulating on social media showed the plane landing with a fireball visible on one of the plane’s wings around 8 am local time.
“Our crew declared an emergency and returned safely to Newark. We are thankful for the quick actions of our crew and first responders,” a FedEx statement reads. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey were the first to confirm the birdstrike.
A witness told ABC New York that they believed the strike that occurred was a single bird.
“I was driving and saw something falling and then fire start on the right wing engine. I believe a bird went through the engine, a big bird. I was in shock. I stopped immediately on the turnpike. Thankfully nothing happened,” Sofiane Zeblah said.
Nobody is believed to have been injured as a result of the incident and airport operations were not impacted. It’s not clear how many people were on board at the time of the incident.
This is just the latest aviation incident in the U.S. in the wake of plane crashes in Alaska and Philadelphia as well as the D.C. plane disaster that claimed the lives of 67 people earlier this month.
