What happened
On September 28, 2016, an Embraer 195 operated by Polskie Linie Lotnicze LOT was performing a scheduled flight from Warsaw Okęcie to Rzeszów-Jasionka. Upon landing on runway 27, the flight crew notified the airport duty officer of a potential bird strike.
Following the report, an inspection of the runway was conducted, which revealed a dead Eurasian pygmy owl. There were no visible damages to the aircraft. The crew performed a subsequent inspection of the aircraft and found no evidence of a collision with a bird.
The investigation
The investigation, conducted by the LOT S.A. Flight Safety Department, established that the bird likely entered the engine exhaust stream during the landing sequence. Because the incident occurred below 200 feet during the final approach phase, the investigation noted that the responsibility for the occurrence lies with the airport management.
Findings
- The primary cause of the incident was an environmental factor.
- The bird was found dead on the runway without any apparent external trauma, suggesting it was likely ingested or struck by the engine's exhaust gases.
- No damage to the aircraft was identified during the post-flight inspection.