A view of the Tianjin Airlines passenger plane from flight A320 after it was hit by hail, July 26, 2018
Tianjin Airlines jet was forced to make an emergency landing in Wuhan in Central China on July 26, after being battered by hailstones at more than 32,000 feet.
Huge lumps of ice smashed the plane’s nose cone and shattered two windscreens in the cockpit, according to pictures released by Chinese aviation authority CAAC.
All passengers and crew members on the Tianjin Airlines’ flight were safe, according to the carrier. The domestic flight was travelling from Tianjin to Haikou, when it encountered the severe weather.
The flight number GS7865 was struck by hailstones about two hours into its four-hour-long journey.
Pictures taken after the emergency landing show the plane’s nose cone had a large dent and was seriously damaged; and the outer layer of two of its windscreens were broken.
According to information on Flightrader24, the plane took off from Tianjin Binhai International Airport at 3:26pm local time yesterday. It was expected to arrive in Haikou Meilan International Airport at 6:25pm.
The aircraft is said to be an Airbus A320-232, which can typically carry 158 passengers. The aircraft was cruising at 9,800 meters above Zhengzhou when the hail occurred.
The windshields are cracked after the plane was hit by hail, July 26, 2018
In an online statement, the airline said the A320 plane was diverted to Wuhan. It made a safe landing and all passengers were unhurt.
Headquartered in Tianjin Binhai International Airport in north-east China, Tianjin Airlines operates both domestic and international flights. It has more than 160 flight routes to more than 100 cities.