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Passengers bound for Southampton on an easyJet flight found themselves finishing the journey by coach after a bird struck the aircraft.
Flight EZY415 departed Glasgow airport at 9.26am on Sunday, 18 October, for a domestic flight to Southampton that usually lasts around an hour.
The flight was an hour-and-a-half delayed by the time it left Glasgow, having been scheduled to leave at 8.05am.
Just under halfway through the flight, the Airbus A319 sent out an emergency squawk code 7700 while flying over Lancashire.
Squawk 7700 is a universal transponder code that alerts air traffic control when a plane needs immediate assistance for a general emergency, signalling the airport to clear the runway and prepare emergency services for when the flight arrives.
The aircraft started to circle the air around Liverpool, before making a landing at Liverpool John Lennon airport just after 10am.
A spokesperson for easyJet told The Independent the flight was diverted to Liverpool due to a “bird strike after take-off”.
A bird strike is a collision between a bird or airborne animal and an aircraft.
“We arranged for onward coach transfers to get customers to Southampton as soon as possible,” the spokesperson added.
“The safety of our customers and crew is our highest priority and while this was outside of our control, we would like to apologise for the inconvenience caused.”
Live updates from easyJet operations control show that once the flight landed, the airline assessed what could be done to resolve the issues caused by the bird strike.
It then said it would arrange a replacement aircraft, before later informing passengers that it would be finishing the journey by road.
“We have arranged onward transport for you. Please do not try to arrange your own transport at this time. If you find your own transport when we could have provided it for you, we’ll not be able to reimburse you for those expenses,” the airline said.
Passengers were then told to collect their bags from the baggage belt before boarding a coach.
Bird strikes can cause significant damage to aircraft, with a risk of jet engines losing power should they suck in a bird.
Affected aircraft will often need to abort their takeoff or landing attempts, which can be costly for airlines and their passengers.
Bird strikes are common in the aviation industry and are most likely to occur during takeoff, landing or near airports.
The UK’s Civil Aviation Authority recorded 1,702 bird strikes in 2025 in the country, a number only beaten in the past decade by 1,835 in 2016.
Read more: What is a bird strike? How concerned you need to be when flying
