TUI Airways jet forced to make emergency landing at Gatwick after hitting two swans

A TUI Airways jet flying from London to Cape Verde was forced to make an emergency landing after it collided with two swans. Photo / Getty Images

A TUI Airways service heading to Cape Verde had to abandon flight almost immediately after striking birds.

A Boeing 737 was forced to make an emergency landing at London Gatwick Airport after crashing into two swans.

The aircraft, TUI service BY432 to the island of href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/travel/cape-verde-holiday-british-travellers-contract-stomach-bugs-at-resorts/27MFB2VSWZFOXOEVXFTPJZJUYQ/" target="_blank">Cape Verde, was forced to abandon the flight almost immediately after striking the birds.

Pictures of the aircraft, registered G-TUMP, show bloodstains over both the co-pilots’ windscreen as well as further marks and impact damage to the Boeing’s nose cone.

A view from inside the flight deck shows that the windscreens, designed to withstand high-speed impacts with birds, were undamaged apart from the stains.

Nobody was injured in Wednesday’s bird strike incident. The pilots entered a holding pattern over Sussex to burn off excess fuel and bring the aeroplane down to a safe landing weight.

TUI #uk B737 MAX 8, registration G-TUMP, suffered a severe bird strike involving #swans during takeoff from runway 26L...

Posted by Global Aviation Spotters - Tunisia HQ on Friday 7 February 2025

A TUI spokesman said the 150 passengers aboard the flight took off for Cape Verde about three hours later on a new aircraft, denying previous reports that a “mayday” broadcast was made.

Bird strikes are a routine part of airline operations. All modern airliners are designed to withstand bird strikes but in some cases they can prove catastrophic.

In 2009, a US Airways Airbus A320 struck a flock of birds shortly after taking off from New York’s LaGuardia Airport. After both engines lost power, Captain “Sully” Sullenberger landed the aircraft in the Hudson River without fatalities.