Air Malta has warned weekend passengers that they may face delays after a bird strike grounded one of its planes on Friday, adding to the airline’s aircraft woes. 

An Air Malta plane was forced to cancel its take-off and return back to its airport stand on Friday when one of its engines was “considerably” damaged in a bird strike. 

The complication is the third incident involving the airline’s planes in less than a week.

Last Saturday, a separate bird strike forced Air Malta to cancel a take-off from London Southend airport, while on Thursday an Air Malta flight from Gatwick was delayed when a passenger bridge struck the aircraft. 

Bird strikes, which most commonly occur during take-off and landing routines, can cause significant damage to plane engines and bodies. 

Two planes grounded

In a statement on Friday, the airline said that it now had two planes grounded and faced a “challenging” flight schedule on Friday and throughout the weekend. 

“Delays are thus expected,” the airline said. It advised passengers to check its website or Facebook page for updated information. 

Air Malta operates a fleet of eight planes in total. 

Friday’s incident affected passengers aboard KM662 to Palermo. Following the rejected take-off, passengers were taken back to the MIA terminal building and offered the option of having their fare refunded or being re-routed to their destination on other Air Malta flights. 

The aircraft was now being checked by engineers, the airline said. 

“Air Malta apologises for this inconvenience due to circumstances beyond its control.”