Rockwell International NA-265-80 Sabreliner, Brownwood, Texas, May 9, 2005–The NTSB blamed bird ingestion for the damage to the first-stage compressor of the Sabreliner’s left engine that caused loss of thrust. The incident happened during the takeoff roll, just after V1.
The crew and passengers heard a loud bang and the airplane swerved to the left. “Rapidly losing directional control,” the 4,120-hour captain aborted the takeoff and the Sabreliner ran off the departure end of the runway. Investigators found foreign object damage to five first stage compressor blades, along with small organic fibers that appeared to be from a bird.
The Sabreliner, operated by Compass Acquisitions and Development of Dallas, was substantially damaged, but there were no injuries.