African airline reports drone collision with passenger jet

An African airline reported Friday that one of its planes collided with a drone while approaching the airport in Tete, Mozambique.

Linhas Aereas de Mozambique (LAM) said on its Facebook page that the Boeing 737-700 was approaching Tete from Maputo on Thursday about 5:15 p.m. local time with 86 people aboard when the incident happened. The plane landed safely without any injuries.

“The crew heard a crash, which alerted the possibility that the aircraft had contact with an external body,” LAM said on its Facebook page.

If the object that struck the jet is confirmed as a drone, the incident would be one of the first worldwide where a remote-controlled aircraft collided with a passenger airliner. While pilots have reported hundreds of sightings of drones near planes, previous suspected collisions have been debunked.

The Drone Manufacturers Alliance, a group representing most civilian-drone makers, noted that past reports of collisions with passenger planes "turned out to be false."

"Nevertheless, we take these reports seriously, and our member companies stand ready to offer assistance to Mozambique’s aviation authorities as they investigate this incident," the group said in a statement. "Our members are investing heavily in technology and features that enhance safety and help avoid collisions, and we work hard to educate users about safe operations."

Regulators in the U.S. and around the world have spent years devising flight rules for drones because of concerns that a collision could knock out an airliner's engine or cause other significant damage, as has happened with bird strikes. But regulators have sought to strike a balance between limits, such as restricting flights around airports and hindering development of the fast-changing technology.

The LAM crew initially thought the plane hit a bird, but found numerous gashes in the right side of the nose after landing, suggesting a collision with a more substantial object. Pictures on social media showed gouges in the plane’s nose cone, where important electronics are located.

Mozambique’s Institute of Civil Aviation is investigating the incident, according to the news site Mozambicano.com.