ROMULUS, Mich. – A Delta flight on its way to Detroit Metro Airport was forced to turn back to Buffalo after the plane was struck by lightning Thursday.
Planes are designed to withstand lightning, but the jolt still shook up the 60 passengers aboard flight 58-79.
"I closed my eyes and I saw this big flash and big pop at the same time, a big flash even with my eyes closed," passenger Matt Gould said. "[I] open my eyes, everyone was looking around. We kind of had a feeling we were hit by lighting. We weren't sure."
The pilots knew right away what happened and they radioed air traffic control about what happened.
"We just had a severe lightning strike hit the nose," a pilot said over the radio. "We're going to have to return to Buffalo for now."
Gould, an avid traveler, said fear came over him for a moment when the crew jumped into action and turned the flight around, but he said he was OK with the delay for safety's sake.