A Skardu-bound private airline flight was forced to make an emergency return shortly after takeoff from Lahore on Sunday morning after a bird strike incident.
According to a spokesperson for the airline, Flight PA-481 encountered a bird strike during takeoff from Lahore, prompting the pilot to abort the journey and safely return the aircraft to the Lahore airport.
The airline confirmed that 149 passengers were safely offloaded following the emergency landing.
The flight to Skardu has since been cancelled, as well as the return flight from Skardu to Lahore, the spokesperson added.
According to reports, the bird strike damaged two blades of the aircraft’s engine number 2, resulting in the decision to cancel the flight for safety and technical inspection.