Plane Hits Bear When Landing in Southeast Alaska

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An Alaska Airlines jetliner struck a brown bear while landing early Saturday evening in Yakutat, killing the animal and causing some damage to the plane. No one in the plane was hurt.

Airport crew members had cleared the runway about 10 minutes before flight 66 was expected to land, said Sam Dapcevich, a public information officer for the state’s Department of Transportation. The crews did not see any signs of wildlife during the check, but as the plane began to slow after landing, Dapcevich said, the pilots spotted two bears crossing the runway.

“The nose gear missed the bears, but the captain felt an impact on the left side after the bears passed under the plane,” a statement from Alaska Airlines said.

The Boeing 737-700 struck and killed a brown bear sow, but its cub, thought to be roughly 2 years old, was uninjured, Dapcevich said.

The pilots saw the “bear lying about 20 feet off the center of the runway,” as the plane taxied to parking just before 6:30 p.m., according to Alaska Airlines.

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