Huge damage to front of plane struck by bird after leaving Spain

An Airbus plane has been grounded after suffering massive damage as it was hit by a bird while taking off from a Spanish airport.

This afternoon Iberia Flight IB579 was forced to land back in Madrid after it was reportedly struck by a large bird during takeoff.

Photos from Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport, the main air travel hub for Spain's capital, showed the radome, the plane's nose, had suffered severe damage.

The material at the front had fallen away from the plane, an Airbus A321-253NY that was meant to fly to Paris.

In one photo, the offending bird that apparently cause the strike was seen in one of the plane's jets.