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Central Region You already know about the "Miracle on the Hudson" event. But there was another terrifying collision between birds and an Airbus last year that didn't get as much attention. While the aircraft involved – Frontier Airlines Flight 820, an Airbus 319 – maintained the use of one engine, the encounter was no less frightening to the 124 passengers onboard. And the safe air- borne handling and emergency landing were also dramatic and memorable as an extraordinary example of professionalism took place both in the cockpit and in the control tower at Kansas City International Airport. That's where controller Jessica Herms- dorfer, an Air Force veteran and now a CPC at MCI for the past two years, was working departure radar all combined up in the tower cab in the early part of a Sat- urday evening. Frontier 820 departed for Denver at ap- proximately 7 p.m. local time on Nov. 14 and checked in on the departure fre- quency normally with Hermsdorfer. FRONTIER 820: Departure, good evening, Frontier 820 is two point five, climbing one-zero thousand. HERMSDORFER: Frontier 820, Kansas City Departure, radar contact. Turn left heading two-five-zero, join the Salina transition. Climb and maintain one-five thousand. Hermsdorfer had two arrivals on the east downwind that she was also working when, suddenly, Frontier 820's climb was abruptly interrupted. It was a severe bird strike, occurring at about 4,000 feet. "Mayday, mayday, Frontier eight twenty. Multiple bird strikes. Number two engine is having problems. We're going to imme- diately return back to Kansas City." The aircraft suffered extensive damage. Both engines were struck and one caught fire, losing power. Hermsdorfer quickly but calmly sprang into action. "I turned the aircraft to a 180 degree heading for downwind," she said. "I had another air- craft that was based for final approach, but then changed my mind and turned him out given the severity of the situation and I wanted to give Frontier a clean final." HERMSDORFER: OK, Frontier eight twenty, expect Runway One Left and I'll get you in as soon as possible. Expect the ILS. FRONTIER 820: Thank you. Yeah, we've got severe damage number two engine, possible one engine as well. HERMSDORFER: OK, number two and number one. And then what else do you need? FRONTIER 820: Uh, that's it. Equipment standing by. Hermsdorfer descended the aircraft to 3,000 feet and then went back and gave a pilot's discretion descent "just in case they couldn't hold altitude and wanted to wait to come down," she said. She then told a GoJet flight that she was going to turn him out to get the emergency air- craft inbound first. She gave the Frontier jet another instruc- tion – a left turn heading 90 degrees. But there was nothing extraneous beyond that. Said Hermsdorfer, "I got all the in- formation I could from the pilot without trying to overtask them, and Rob (Bratcher) who was working CIC rang out the crash phone." 8

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