A United Airlines flight made an emergency landing after a fire apparently caused by a rabbit getting sucked into one of its engines during takeoff.
Dramatic video showed repeated flashes of flame shooting from one of United Flight 2325’s engines shortly after it departed Denver International Airport on its way to Edmonton, Canada.
The flight crew can be heard on LiveATC audio requesting the plane be inspected for an engine fire, which the pilot confirmed was caused by a rabbit strike: “Rabbit through the number 2 [engine], that’ll do it,” the pilot said.
Passenger Scott Wolff told “Good Morning America” that he heard a “loud bang” after the unfortunate bunny was ingested by the turbine, followed by “significant vibration in the plane” as it continued its ascent.
The Boeing 737-800, with registration N27213, returned to Denver just one hour after departure.
The flight, which was carrying 153 passengers and six crew, landed safely back in Denver around 8:05 p.m., the Federal Aviation Administration told the outlet. Then the passengers were put on a different aircraft and continued on to Edmonton.
