The bird reportedly died minutes after the crash
A pilot managed to keep his cool after a bird smashed through the windscreen of his cockpit in Ecuador, leaving him covered in blood.
Video footage of Ariel Valiente has gone viral in which the remains of the bird can be seen, with its talons dangling above Valiente, who was left with a bloodied face and and uniform.
He remained calm however and managed to direct the plane, with all of the further exercises completed successfully.
So far the species of the bird has yet to be identified but it is believed to be Andean Condor, which can have a wingspan of up to 10ft. The bird reportedly died minutes after the collision.
One flight instructor who re-shared the video said: “When in a stressful situation, pilots will revert to the first thing they learned. That’s why initial training is so important.”
Related links:
- US man shoots himself in his sleep while dreaming about a break-in
- Airline ‘investigating’ after woman served wrong croissant on ‘worst flight of her life’
- Jonnie Irwin ‘removes himself’ from family home to stay in hospice
