On Tuesday, March 11th, 2025, Allegiant Air Flight 1536, an Airbus A320-200 aircraft bearing registration N253NV bound for Flint Bishop Airport (FNT) in Michigan, suffered a bird strike shortly after takeoff. As a result of the incident, the plane was forced to return to St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport (PIE) in Florida. No injuries were reported as a result of the incident, according to reports from Florida-based local news outlet FOX 13.
The flight, which was carrying 182 people, took off at 11:57 AM from PIE's Runway 36 before landing safely at approximately 12:15 PM, about 18 minutes after departure from the airport, according to The Aviation Herald. Although the crew did not declare an official emergency, they acted with an abundance of caution to ensure passenger safety by choosing to return to the airport so that the plane could undergo an investigation.
As is typically the case with these kinds of bird strike incidents, flight-critical components may not have been fully damaged as a result of the incident, but inspections and rigorous testing remain the best path forward. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has announced that it will be conducting an investigation on the incident, something which it has referred to as routine.