Planes get delayed on the runway because of birds all the time, but recently a military plane’s take off was aborted because of a fish.
Planes get delayed on the runway because of birds all the time, but last September a military plane take off was aborted because of a fish.
Yes, a jet departing from the MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida had to stop travelling down the runway because it got hit by a nine-inch sheepshead fish.
At the time, the crew thought an osprey had collided with the plane and they stopped, as birds can cause a lot of damage.
When the base’s wildlife manager searched the area, however, all she could find was the small aquatic creature.
She had it sent to the Smithsonian Institution department that handles those sorts of things and it was confirmed that it was indeed the culprit.
Eventually, the chain of events was pieced together and it is believed that an eagle was responsible for the fish becoming airborne.
The bird had been enjoying it on the side of the runway when the plane began to rumble. It took flight, and dropped the sheepshead in the process.
Since then, it’s become a bit of a joke around the base, and people are now referring to the incident as the ‘fishnado’.
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