Bird Strike: WATCH F/A-18 Catches Fire During Demo Flight

Flight emergencies happen for a whole host of reasons and one that's becoming increasingly prevalent is when a bird crosses paths with a plane.

One of the engines of a US Navy aerial demonstration team's F/A-18 Hornet caught fire mid-air after a bird got sucked through it during a recent show, the Associated Press reported.

The mishap occurred at the Vero Beach Air Show in Florida on April 21, 2018. The pilot managed to make an emergency landing and did not suffer any injuries.

According to the Military Times crash data base, there were some 418 incidents of mid-air collisions with US military aircraft. The total damages are estimated to be in the neighborhood of $182 million.

On April 24, 2018, an F-16 Fighting Falcon fourth generation multi-role warplane crashed near Lake Havasu, Arizona. The pilot managed to bail out to safety.

The accident happened just days after two Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptors — the world’s first fifth generation fighters – suffered serious problems during training missions over Alaska and Nevada.

The F/A-18 Hornet is the US Navy’s and Marine Corps’ main shipborne fighter jet, jointly developed by McDonnell Douglas and Northrop Grumman.

READ MORE: Qatar Airways Plane Made Emergency Landing in Istanbul Over Bird Strike