
"A JetBlue A320 is parked at Brookley Field after a ground breaking ceremony for an assembly line for the Airbus A320 at Brookley Aeroplex in Mobile, Alabama on April 8, 2013. AFP PHOTO/ Matthew Hinton (Photo credit should read Matthew HINTON/AFP via Getty Images)"
AFP/GettyA passenger plane was forced to turn around less than 15 minutes into its journey after hitting a coyote while taking off. Passengers said they heard a thud as JetBlue flight 1129 thundered down the runway at T.F. Green Airport in Rhode Island on Tuesday, bound for JFK in New York City. “We heard a thud and then after the thud, we still took off,” said passenger Erin Drozda, speaking to 12News. “We were up in the air for 10 to 15 minutes, and then all of a sudden the captain came on and said, ‘This is the flight crew. If anyone heard that thud, we hit a coyote and we are now on our way back to Providence.’” She added, “We thought it was a joke at first. You don’t ever hear that.” She said fire crews met them and were made to exit the plane while an inspection was carried out, delaying the 19-year-old Airbus A320 by almost two hours. In a statement to CBS News, JetBlue said the decision had been made “out of an abundance of caution.” It added, “The flight landed safely and a full inspection was done on the aircraft with no issues reported.”

















