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Northwest Jet Lands In Tampa With Dented Nose Cone

Photo by PETER BRYLINKE

This Boeing 757 landed at Tampa International Airport on Sunday with a dented nose cone, with one report blaming it on a collision with a bird.

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By RAY REYES | The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 6, 2008

TAMPA - A Northwest Airlines flight from Detroit created a stir among passengers when it landed in Tampa this afternoon with a sizable dent in the nose.

Northwest called it "a minor maintenance issue" in a statement released today.

Tampa International Airport spokeswoman Brenda Geoghagan said the aircraft collided with a bird. There were no injuries and the pilot did not request emergency vehicles to be on hand when making the landing, she said.

The incident with Northwest Airlines flight 478 however, delayed passengers traveling from Tampa to Minneapolis.

"I may be late for school," said Peter Brylinke, who was taking the Boeing 757 back to his home in Minneapolis after spending the July 4 weekend in Tampa. "The plane was sitting on the runway with a smashed-in nose. It looked like it crashed into a wall."

Northwest spokeswoman Kristin Baur said the airline stands by its statement and did not say if the airplane struck something while in the air. The incident is under investigation.

Flight 478 left Detroit this afternoon with 182 passengers, Baur said. Passengers who booked flights from Tampa to Minneapolis were offered compensation packages, she said.

When the plane landed, passengers exiting the plane and others about to board "wondered what was going on," Brylinke said. When he saw the dent, Brylinke knew he had to book another flight.

"There was no way I was getting on that plane," he said. "This is a pretty odd situation."

The Boeing 757 is one of the most common commercial aircraft in use today. The nose, which is made of a carbon fiber, houses radar that scans for weather.

News Channel 8 reporter Natalie Shepherd and Tribune reporter Neil Johnson contributed to this report. Reporter Ray Reyes can be reached at (813) 259-7920 or rreyes@tampatrib.com.

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