Curiosity
Lightning Hits Plane During flight, No Injuries Reported
A palm-city bound plane was diverted to Newark Airport after being struck by lightning. The pilot landed safely and there were no injuries. All 148 passengers were connected to a new flight to Florida that left just after midnight. The weather in the North East had been stormy all evening Friday, with heavy rains due to Tropical Storm Andrea
The severe round of weather hitting the Midwestern and Eastern portions of the United States caused an emergency on a New York-bound American Airlines jet this week.
The captain of a midweek flight that had departed Detroit for LaGuardia Airport in the New York City metropolitan area reported that the plane had been struck by lightening while on approach to LaGuardia.
A source told the Post, “The jet was hit by multiple lightning strikes that caused multiple systems failures.” The Post also reports, “The plane initially diverted to Kennedy Airport, but was too heavy to land because it was carrying a nearly full load of fuel. It circled for more than an hour to burn off the extra fuel, the law-enforcement source said.”
The captain, who had 20 passengers aboard his aircraft, immediately declared an emergency but was able to land the airship safely in New York. A woman who is related to the pilot on the plane reports he told her that passengers were screaming after everyone heard a loud explosion.
At first the crew thought it was a bomb, but when they immediately saw flashes of light following the booming sound, they knew that the aircraft had been struck by a bolt of lightening. There were no injuries reported to either passengers or crew who were able to depart the plane safely and quickly once it had landed.
American Airlines officials grounded the aircraft, which shows signs of burns on its tail end, until it could be completely inspected. Temperatures in the Midwest have been hotter and more humid than normal, causing a dramatic increase in the formation of lightening.
On The Web
lightning hits plane
http://blogs.woodtv.com/2013/05/09/lightning-hits-airplane/
JetBlue Flight Lands At Newark After Being Hit By Lightning
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/emergency_jet_land_VkuiM52ohDtfX9wadeW3tJ?utm_medium=rss&utm_content=%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20Local