LAHORE: A foreign airline’s passenger plane on Tuesday narrowly escaped an accident. A bird hit the plane near the Allama Iqbal International Airport in Lahore. With around 350 passengers on board, a bird hit the Istanbul-bound plane. The bird hit the plane as soon as it took off from the airport. The pilot, however, managed to turn the plane around and also landed it safely at the airport. The airline accepted the passengers’ request and also made arrangements for their stay in a hotel. It also promised passengers to arrange another flight to Istanbul and refunded them the money for their PCR tests. Earlier, after the flight had been cancelled, the airline had recommended passengers leave for their homes. Fearing a protest by passengers, authorities had called for additional contingents of the Airport Security Force (ASF) to control the situation.