A JetBlue plane is believed to have been hit by a drone shortly before landing at New York City's John F. Kennedy International Airport on Monday.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) told CNN that Flight 948 reported the strike at approximately 3,000 feet on its final approach to the runway around 7:15 a.m. local time on Monday morning.
"Just quickly, I couldn’t talk to approach, but we collided with a drone back there in the turn," the JetBlue pilot told the tower in audio recorded by ATC.com.
After being questioned by the controller, the pilot replied, "Yep, it hit us right, right above the cockpit."
JetBlue confirmed that the plane landed safely and was taken out of service for inspection as a result of the pilot's report.
The FAA is now investigating what would be one of the first known collisions involving a drone and a U.S. commercial passenger aircraft. In the past, some suspected strikes were determined to have been caused by birds or mechanical problems.
"Customers deplaned normally and the plane was removed from service for a post-flight inspection, which found no damage or evidence of a collision. Safety is JetBlue’s first priority, and we will assist with any relevant investigations," the airline said in a statement to CNN.
Monday's incident comes just days after a United Airlines flight was involved in a near-miss incident with a drone while landing at nearby Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey.
The pilot in that incident was heard telling air traffic controllers that "we almost hit a drone...about 100 feet below us."
Despite being banned from this airspace, the FAA reports approximately 100 drone sightings per month near U.S. airports.
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