SHOW LOW, AZ - A bird smashed through the window of a plane in flight above Arizona on Wednesday, creating a hole bigger than the size of a basketball.
Ameriflight Vice President for Safety and Standards John Hazlet said the cargo plane took off from Phoenix early in the morning.
As it was descending to land in Show Low, a bird apparently hit and smashed through the windshield at about 11,000 feet.
SEE PICTURES OF THE PLANE'S DAMAGE IN THE ATTACHED PHOTO SLIDESHOW
Warning: The above photos may be graphic for some readersThe pilot, Robert Wutke, was the only person onboard.
Hazlet said Wutke had a cut to his face from the shattered glass and from parts of the bird. He was taken to the hospital and given stitches but received no other injuries.
“He didn’t see it coming," Hazlet said. "He did a good job and we are very glad it wasn’t worse than it was.”
Hazlet said he wasn’t sure how long Wutke has been a pilot but said he has worked for Ameriflight for less than a year.
Hazlet also said the National Transportation Safety Board took samples of the bird to try and determine what kind of bird it was.
Earlier in the week,
a commercial plane safely landed at Sky Harbor Airport after it reportedly flew into a group of birds.
In January, a US Airways jet crashed into the Hudson River after a bird knocked out its engines.
