Air Malta faces flight disruptions following bird strike incident in Lourdes

Air Malta experienced a bird strike incident on one of its charter flights, KM7446, en route from Malta to Lourdes in the early hours of July 18.

All passengers on board were safely disembarked.

Following the bird strike, Air Malta's subsequent flight, KM7447 scheduled to depart from Lourdes to Malta at 01:40 local time on July 18, has been delayed.

The airline's technical support team is currently conducting the necessary inspections before the aircraft can resume its journey to Malta.

The incident has resulted in anticipated disruptions to Air Malta's flight schedules throughout the day. The airline recently introduced additional flights between Malta and Palermo to assist passengers affected by an incident at Catania Airport.

As a consequence of this latest event, Air Malta expects ongoing delays and changes to its flight itineraries for the remainder of the day.

Air Malta has extended its sincere apologies to all affected passengers for any inconvenience caused by this event.

Bird strikes are a recognised hazard in aviation and occur when birds collide with aircraft during takeoff or landing. They can potentially damage vital components of the aircraft, including engines, wings, or windshields, posing a risk to the safety of the flight.

In such instances, airlines are required to perform thorough inspections to ensure the aircraft is in an airworthy condition before resuming operations.