Aju Business Daily

SEOUL -- A bird strike forced a Korean Air plane with 188 passengers aboard to fly back and make an emergency landing during a domestic flight from an airport in Seoul to the southern resort island of Jeju. No injuries or fire were reported.

The return flight by KE1203 came 38 minutes after the plane took off at 7:34 a.m. Thursday from Gimpo Airport in western Seoul. Korean Air said the pilot made a quick and accurate decision to fly back when a bird was sucked into the engine soon after its takeoff.

A bird strike is a collision between an airborne animal and a manmade vehicle, especially an aircraft. Bird strikes are a significant threat to flight safety and have caused a number of accidents with human casualties. Most accidents occur when a bird collides with the windscreen or is sucked into the engines of aircraft.