A plane heading from Cuba to Florida was forced to turn back on Sunday after it struck birds, flipped an engine to set it on fire, filling the cabin with smoke.
Southwest Airlines Flight 2923 was en route to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, before having to return to Havana after striking birds.
As the plane gained altitude, it “sustained bird strikes on an engine and the nose of the aircraft,” the airline said.
One passenger, Steven Rodriguez, told WSVN-TV that the emergency oxygen masks were deployed, adding, “It was like a burning smell, and it hurt my face. My eyes got very red. , my chest started to burn.”
Mr Rodriguez’s video shows a smoke-filled cabin, with passengers screaming as oxygen masks dangle.
A voice then speaks in Spanish on the tannoy, seeming to calm people down.
The plane landed safely in Cuba with no reported injuries, and some passengers exited the plane using the emergency exit on the wings, while others used the inflatable slides.
The airline transported passengers and crew by bus to the airport terminal and put the passengers on another flight to Fort Lauderdale, the airline said.
