Rescue helicopter (symbol image)
Photo: Patrick Seeger / dpa
A collision with a bird of prey forced a rescue helicopter in Lower Saxony to make an emergency landing on a dirt road.
The pilot landed his machine after the collision on Thursday afternoon to be on the safe side near the municipality of Eystrup, the police said.
A rotor blade of the helicopter was reportedly slightly damaged.
The crew was unharmed.
However, the helicopter must be loaded and transported away, it said.
The police believe that the bird was killed in the collision.
The helicopter crew took a taxi to the nearest base in order to be ready for use again with a replacement machine.
According to the police, the helicopter was on a flight from Hanover to Bremen when the bird got into the rotor blades.
hba / AFP