Delta Flight 2348, which flies every weekday from Minneapolis to Madison, Wisconsin, was not your typical bird strike story. Rail passengers were understandably left scratching their heads by the surprise introductions to pigeons. These rare occurrences developed soon after takeoff, forcing the jet to return to the gate – not just once, but twice.
Things started getting chaotic when a pigeon started fluttering around through the cabin, raising alarm amongst the passengers. Tee G, an Instagram user who was a passenger on the Emirates flight, filmed the shocking series of events and posted it on social media.
As I boarded Delta Flight 2348 at MSP tonight, that passenger was one of many. Their favorite thing, they say, was telling a flight attendant that there was a pigeon on board. It seemed like it would completely flip over. Caw explained, describing the disbelief of the passengers at first.
It only took a moment for the pilot to verify the overwhelming nature of that pigeon on the intercom. He confided that he had never dealt with a challenge like this in his lengthy career. The grounded crew members quickly boarded the plane and extricated the first pigeon. The pigeons were greeted with applause as the passengers exited. One little girl even asked if she could touch the bird.
As this flight taxied out, I don’t know exactly where this second pigeon came from. This surprise passenger made the flight go back to the gate one more time. This second case had passengers and crew scratching their heads.
The pilot got on the mic and confirmed a pigeon was on the plane, and said he had no experience with this situation, Caw recounted. “The control tower responded that it was a first for them.”
The pilot jokingly remarked to Caw that he’d shot enough pigeons that night. Only thirty minutes prior, he had counted the first bird.
Passengers looked on in delight as one intrepid soul attempted to nab a pigeon under his coat. His antics made things feel a little more fun despite the interruption. Fortunately, the second pigeon was safely removed without incident by a baggage handler.
Maybe the pigeons were sick of visiting grandma and wanted chips,” Caw laughed. Perhaps they were unaware that this flight to MSN is just a tad too short for Delta to provide beverage/snack service.
