DHL cargo jet lands safely after missile attack in Iraq
A cargo jet operated by DHL, a provider of courier services, landed safely Saturday after being hit by a surface-to-air missile just after taking off from Baghdad’s main civilian airport, according to press reports from the region.
The plane, an Airbus A300 bound for Bahrain, was hit in the wing by a missile. After an engine caught fire, the jet banked sharply and made an emergency landing at the airport. None of the three crewmembers on the plane was hurt.
Authorities said there have been at least 12 other attempted attacks on the few civilian flights, most of them cargo planes, that are using the Baghdad airport. DHL has been making two or three flights a day into Baghdad since June, a DHL spokesperson told the Associated Press.
DHL and Royal Jordanian Airlines, the only commercial passenger carrier flying to Baghdad, have suspended flights to Baghdad at the request of the Coalition Authority in Iraq.