Seven-hour delay as Flydubai aircraft struck by bird in Sri Lanka

A flydubai aircraft was delayed by nearly seven hours following a bird strike while landing in Sri Lanka, the airline said on Tuesday.

According to a flydubai spokesman, flight FZ551, operated by a Boeing 737-800 - experienced a bird strike on landing at Mattala Rajapaksa airport in southeast Sri Lanka.

“As a result, the return flight from Mattla to Dubai was delayed by 6 hours and 42 minutes and passengers were provided with refreshments in the terminal,” the spokesperson added.

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“We apologise for the inconvenience this may have caused to their travel schedules.”

In Sri Lanka, flydubai operates out of both Mattala airport and Colombo Bandaranike International Airport outside the country’s capital.