The incident happened in Ecuador and the pilot, Ariel Valiente, managed to land the plane safely even as the cadaver of the large bird was dangling in his cockpit.
A shocking video is going viral on social media platforms showing blood smeared all across a pilot’s face after a bird smashed through the windscreen of the aircraft he was flying. The short clip which has been widely viewed and shared online since it was first posted, shows the lower half of the huge bird’s body hanging in the cockpit and the pilot covered in blood.
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The incident happened in Ecuador and the the pilot has been identified as Ariel Valiente, Russia Today reported, adding that the brave pilot managed to land the plane safely even as the cadaver of the large bird was dangling in his cockpit.
“Pilot safely lands his plane after a huge bird struck his windshield in the Los Rios Province, Ecuador. Ariel Valiente was not injured during the incident,” a Twitter handle that shared the video wrote in the caption.
The video clip has gone viral on social media platforms and garnered thousands of comments from users who lauded the pilot’s calm and composed demeanor in the face of adversity while others have highlighted how such instances have proved fatal previously.
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“So lucky, I knew an airline pilot that lost his eye when this happened,” a user wrote. “The guy s a legend,” another user commented.
“I’ve heard of roadkill, but never have I seen or heard of airkill,” a user joked.
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Some users highlighted the importance of proper flight training which they said was the key how Captain Valiente managed to remain calm and safely landed the aircraft despite the accident. “When in a stressful situation, pilots will revert to the first thing they learned. That’s why initial training is so important,” wrote a user who claimed to be a flight instructor.
Several reports online suggested that the huge bird that crashed through the aircraft’s windshield might have been an Andean Condor— a giant Cathartid vulture found in the Andes mountains and adjacent Pacific coasts of western South America. The Andean condor, which can weigh upto 15 kg, is the largest flying bird in the world by combined measurement of weight and wingspan.
The mammoth bird can have a wingspan of upto nine feet.
There’s also no information if the blood seen smeared on the pilot in the viral video, belongs to him or the suspected Andean Condor.
