'Hail pounding the roof': Flight makes emergency landing after hailstorm causes extensive damage

A Delta (DL) aircraft bound for New York-JFK from Milan encountered a terrifying hailstorm shortly after take-off, leading to a harrowing roller coaster-like experience for the 215 passengers on board, according to media reports.

The plane's fuselage near the wings and the nose cone suffered substantial damage on Monday. As a result, the aircraft had to make an emergency landing in Rome, ABC News reported.

A spokesperson from the airline told the New York Post, "Delta flight 185 from Milan to New York-JFK diverted to Rome after experiencing an apparent weather-related maintenance issue shortly after departure."

The spokesperson added that the flight "landed safely in Rome where passengers deplaned normally." Fortunately, there were no reported injuries among the passengers or crew.

Passenger shares experience

One of the passengers, Steven Coury, recounted the terrifying ordeal to ABC News. He said that the turbulence felt like a "roller coaster ride."

"[When] We took off, it was normal; as we get into the air a few minutes later, we encounter severe turbulence, and we all hear noise we've never heard before. And that was hail pounding on the roof of the plane," Curry was quoted as saying.

Curry added that the situation escalated when a passenger spotted the right-hand wing shaking violently, adding to the fear that it might break off. He added, "One passenger looked out the window and saw the wing shaking violently like it was gonna break off. Look, I saw flashes of light like lightning hitting the plane. And the turbulence was like being on a roller coaster ride dropping significantly."

The hailstorm's impact resulted in severe damage to the aircraft's navigation system, with the nose of the plane taking a major hit. Pictures of the damaged aircraft have also surfaced on social media.

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Delta Airlines issues statement

In response to the incident, Delta Airlines released a statement attributing the emergency landing to a “weather-related maintenance issue.” As per USA Today the statement read, "Delta apologises for the delay to our customers' journey. The safety of our customers and crew is Delta's top priority.”

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