Video Of Air Force 2 Being Grounded Due To Bird Strike In NH

Well, this would definitely be a scary thing to have happen.

Vice President Mike Pence was in town yesterday for a rally in Gilford.  According to Patch.com, when Air Force 2 went to take off from Manchester-Boston Regional Airport, it was struck by a bird.

It looks like the bird flew directly into the jet's engine.  Check out the video:

According to WMUR, Air Force 2 immediately turned back to the airport to land out of an abundance of caution. This happened around 7:30pm.

Manchester-Boston Regional Airport officials posted on their Facebook page:

Witness Andrew Kelley tells WMUR:

"We were wondering what had happened and then we saw that the aircraft, on a tracker, that it had climbed up and then it stopped when it normally would not stop climbing. It started to descend again and started making its way back to Manchester."

WMUR says that crews were seen examining the engine before Pence deplaned to join them.

Patch.com reports that Pence and his staffers were then boarded on to an Air-Force C-17 Globemaster III transport aircraft to get back to Joint Base Andrews.

This seems pretty scary. I was curious how often bird strikes happen while you're in the air.

According to FAA data, planes strike birds 39 times a day!  The FAA says there are also Avian Radar Systems on aircrafts to help with this problem. They say they are continuing to keep avian radar standards and guidance up to date, and are continuing to improve their systems.

I'm sure that Air Force 2 had the absolute best pilots at the helm, and glad that everyone is safe!