Airplane Hits WHAT On Takeoff??

These are the stories you can't make up. An airplane was taking off at an airport in India a couple of days ago and hit something as it was beginning to leave the field.

It hit a buffalo. Because when I think about a plane hitting anything I always think about it hitting a buffalo.

"A SpiceJet Boeing 737-800 aircraft was performing its takeoff roll at Surat airport in India, north of Mumbai, on Thursday when it struck -- of all things -- a buffalo, reported the BBC. The plane's captain reported that the buffalo was set against a black background, and therefore invisible. No passengers or crew were hurt in the accident, reported the BBC, though the buffalo died.

How is it, though, that a substantial animal could have wandered onto airport grounds?
SpiceJet's Chief Operating Officer Sanjiv Kapoor took to Twitter to announce that his airline, the fourth largest in India, is suspending all flights out of Surat."

A buffalo. I once almost hit an elk in Northern Michigan. But a buffalo is a different story. And with a plane. Really.