On 9 June, an Austrian Airlines Airbus A320 (registered OE-LBM) operated flight OS434 between Palma de Mallorca, Spain and Vienna, Austria. About 150 km from Vienna, the aircraft encountered turbulence and severe weather.
The weather and the intense hail strike caused extensive damage to the aircraft’s nose, windshields and other forward-facing surfaces. Despite the significant damage, the pilots continued to safely land at Vienna Airport.
The airline said in a statement: “On flight OS434 from Palma de Mallorca to Vienna, an Airbus A320 aircraft was damaged by hail. The aircraft encountered a thunderstorm cell on approach to Vienna, which the cockpit crew said was not visible on the weather radar. According to current information, the two front cockpit windows of the aircraft, the nose of the aircraft (radome) and some panels were damaged by the hail.”
Due to the damage, a Mayday was made, the statement continued: “the aircraft was able to land safely at Vienna-Schwechat Airport. All passengers on the flight were uninjured. The Austrian Airlines technical team has already been entrusted with the specific damage assessment of the aircraft in question. The safety of our passengers and our crews is Austrian Airlines’ top priority.”
The following pictures appeared on social media:
Austrian Airlines Airbus A320 (OE-LBM, built 2001) sustained extensive damage to its nose, windshields and other forward-facing surfaces due to intense hailstrike. Flight #OS434 from Palma de Mallorca was about 150 km SW of Vienna when the flight encountered turbulence and severe… pic.twitter.com/voR4K3m5oE
— JACDEC (@JacdecNew) June 9, 2024
Austrian Airlines A320 severely damaged by a hailstorm while on approach to Vienna Airport in Austria. Despite the damage to the aircraft's nose and windscreen the pilots landed safely. pic.twitter.com/AIa7aL9HEQ
— Breaking Aviation News & Videos (@aviationbrk) June 9, 2024
— Breaking Aviation News & Videos (@aviationbrk) June 9, 2024
