Plane suffers engine failure after hitting birds on way to Beijing

An airplane was forced to return to an airport in Hefei after it hit birds on the way to Beijing, authorities said. Birds struck the plane's right engine about 10 minutes after after takeoff Saturday morning, a Hefei Xinqiao International Airport spokesman said. The incident led to a mechanical failure in the engine, forcing the China Eastern Airlines plane to turn around, Xinhua reported. The flight was canceled, and passengers were transferred to another plane. A similar incident occurred on Friday, when an Air China plane had to return to the airport after being struck by birds. Authorities are investigating the two incidents.