After all, the plane was no longer moving through the sky.
The engine had fallen silent.
The immediate danger seemed to have ended.
But the birds did not leave.
They continued circling overhead.
Thousands—or at least what appeared to be an enormous number—remained in the air above the damaged aircraft.
Their calls echoed across the isolated landscape.
Jason looked upward.
Something about their behavior bothered him.
They were not simply flying through the area.
They were staying with the aircraft.
And they repeatedly returned to one particular section.
The rear portion of the fuselage.
The cargo hold.
Jason watched carefully.
The birds seemed to be concentrating on that part of the plane.
At that moment, he began to wonder whether the bird strikes had been connected to something inside the aircraft.
The Strange Pattern Becomes Clear
During the flight, the flock had appeared completely chaotic.
From the cockpit, Jason initially thought the birds were simply behaving unpredictably.
