140 passengers of a Delhi-bound SpiceJet flight from Surat had a narrow escape on Thursday evening when the aircraft hit a stray buffalo on the runway, as it was about to take-off.
Due to the hit, the aircraft’s engine suffered damage and the take-off had to be aborted. The incident occurred around 7 pm.
“A Surat-to-Delhi SpiceJet aircraft, Flight number SG 622, carrying around 140 passengers excluding crew members today hit a stray animal on take-off roll at Surat airport,” said Siddharth Kumar, an airline’s spokesperson.