The Sitka Sentinel reports an Alaska Airlines jet with 80 passengers sucked a bird, possibly a seagull, into its right engine Sunday on its approach to Sitka Rocky Gutierrez Airport. The jet landed safely, but the damaged engine is destined for a $1 million overhaul.
A company flight crew in August 2010 aborted a takeoff 2,000 feet from the end of the runway after it hit an eagle, which caused $2.9 million in damage to a jet.
State Department of Transportation safety and security officer Paul Khera says there have been at least five bird strikes since Aug. 24.
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