Bhubaneswar:  A Delhi-bound IndiGo flight (6E314) with 191 passengers on board returned to Odisha capital following a bird hit soon after it took off from Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) this evening.

It is the first such incident recorded this year.

The Airbus A320 plane suffered the bird hit when it was on the climb, forcing the pilot to discontinue the journey and return to BPIA for an inspection of the plane, said a top airport official.

The incident took place around 6.29 pm and all passengers are safe, the official said.

“The bird-hit aircraft is grounded at the airport where an inspection was carried out to assess the damage to the plane. But no such damage has been reported,” said BPIA Director Suresh Chandra Hota.

The inspection team found an owl at the runway which caused the flight grounded, he added.

After thorough check, the flight left for its return journey to Delhi at around 8.23 pm, Hota informed.

The city airport has witnessed over 69 bird-hit cases in the past five years.

The airport authorities are taking several measures like bursting crackers, reflecting film and frequent inspections among others to control the bird menace.

Recently, an expert team from Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) had visited the airport to find out ways how to keep birds away from the area.