CNN
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An Austrian Airlines plane was badly damaged by hail when the airborne jet hit a “thunderstorm cell” Sunday, Austrian Airlines said.
A storm cell is an air mass that contains up and down drafts, which can cause turbulence when a plane encounters one.
The plane with 173 passengers and six crew onboard from Palma de Mallorca in Spain to Vienna, Austria landed safely at Vienna.
A mayday emergency call was made during the flight, says Austrian.
Social media shows the plane’s nose was seriously damaged, the top of the cockpit bent and the glass in the windows of the cockpit cracked.