Alaska Airlines plane hits multiple deer while landing in Kodiak, Alaska. It's more common than you might think

CNN

2 days ago

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating after an Alaska Airlines plane struck several deer while landing in Kodiak, Alaska Thursday.
Alaska Airlines flight 231, a Boeing 737m had flown the 39-minute flight south from Anchorage and touched down about 8 a.m. Thursday at Kodiak Benny Benson State Airport
During the landing rollout at least two deer were crossing the runway and unfortunately, did not survive, Alaska Airlines said in a statement.
'An inspection found damage to the aircraft's main landing gear that will require repairs in Kodiak,' a spokesperson said.'Passenger flights to and from Kodiak were then canceled for the rest of Thursday and guests were rebooked on other flights.'
Air traffic control audio from LiveATC.net recorded the pilots noticing animals as they came in for landing.
'There is deer on the runway,' the pilot told air traffic control shortly after he was cleared to land, according to audio from LiveATC.net.
'Roger, do you have an idea of where they are at currently,' the tower responded.
'The intersection,' the pilot responded.
The airport closed the runway for a short time while crews cleared the remains, finding at least two carcasses.
The plane was able to taxi and park without further incident. No passengers or crew were injured in the incident, the airline said.
'The pilots need to come down and look at this, if you can just give them a shout and they can come – yeah,' an airport worker on the ground told the tower in the LiveATC recording.
The plane involved remains at Kodiak and has not flown since the strike, according to flight tracking website FlightAware.
Aircraft collide with animals every day at airports across the country, with more than 22,000 strikes reported last year alone, according to the FAA's wildlife strike database. Planes at Kodiak Airport hit animals five times last year, all of them birds, including two bald eagles.
Across the US last year, planes hit deer more than two dozen times. In 2024, the database also includes planes colliding with three alligators in Florida, a mongoose in Hawaii, a badger in North Dakota and numerous coyotes, bats, skunks and opossums.