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Delta Air Lines flight DL17, an Airbus A330-200, returned to London Heathrow Airport after the crew discovered a crack in the right-hand cockpit windshield. The flight had taken off from runway 27L with 190 passengers and landed safely back on runway 27R. Data from FlightAware confirmed that the aircraft returned without incident.
The Aviation Herald reported that the aircraft leveled off at FL260 before deciding to return and transfer passengers to another plane for their journey to Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport.
Windshield cracks are not uncommon in commercial aviation. Oliver McGee, Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Howard University, noted in a LinkedIn post: “Cracked or shattered cockpit windshield occurrences...happen more often than one might think.”
