The £73M Eurofighter Brought to Its Knees by a Bird in Mid-Air Collision

The canopy shatters under extreme stress
In one frame, the seagull is captured just prior to impact; in the next, its body and blood seem to explode into view as the Typhoon’s canopy cracks open, dropping fragments of perspex. The third image reveals parts of the canopy tearing away, and the fourth settles into a closeâ€'up of the damaged glazing. The canopy, built to withstand extreme conditions, nevertheless succumbed under the tremendous kinetic energy of the bird at approximately 600 mph — a violent collision that would have been catastrophic if the pilot hadn’t maintained elastic composure.