Mid-Air Scare As Ice Block Shatters Plane Windscreen

The nearly 50-hour delay meant the passengers, who were to be back in London on Christmas Eve, could not reach home in time

A block of ice that fell from a plane flying 1,000 feet above shattered the windscreen of a British Airways plane. The Boeing 777, flying from London's Gatwick airport to Costa Rica in Central America, was flying at an altitude of 35,000 feet when the ice block struck its windshield, reported the Daily Mail. With a damaged windshield, the pilots of the British Airways Flight BA2236 managed to fly it to San Jose in California where the repairs were done. However, the delay meant that around 200 passengers, who were due back in London by Christmas Eve, could not reach home in time. .@british_airways the BA2236 from San Jose saga continues, 1h30 sat on the tarmac as the ground staff failed to count who exactly is on the flight. BA cabin crew are excellent and as frustrated as us. Merry Christmas ????

The flight was due to leave San Jose for Gatwick on December 23 evening but the time taken to repair the windscreen meant the passengers were delayed by at least 50 hours, and got to leave for London only on Boxing Day, reported the Daily Mail.

The passengers were initially told to expect a delay of 90 minutes for their overnight trip. But a failure to get a plane diverted from Jamaica forced them to spend another night at the airport hotel in San Jose.