Jaw-dropping pictures show what hailstones can do to your aircraft

If there’s a modern definition of hero, airplane pilots should definitely be included. 

Take Alexander Akopov, the Ukrainian captain whose Cyprus-bound aircraft carrying 127 people was battered by a epic hailstorm just 10 minutes after take-off from Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport. 

Golfball-sized hailstones damaged the A320’s nose, shattering the windscreen and leaving the pilots unable to see from the forward window. 

Akopov then took the difficult decision to turn the plane around and gained permission to land at Ataturk, despite the airport being closed to other flights. Read more…

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