Their flight took off from Tampa only to circle over the Gulf for hours and land right where they started

Flying above the blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico and staring at the world below doesn’t sound too terrible, until it’s all you do for hours instead of flying to San Francisco.

A group of United Airways passengers leaving Tampa didn’t get a chance to leave their hearts in San Francisco after their flight Thursday had to return to Tampa International Airport, according to reports.

Shortly after 8 a.m. Friday, a United Airways flight en route to San Francisco had just taken off from Tampa when it struck a flock of birds, airport officials told FOX 13.

The pilot took the plane in circles over the Gulf of Mexico, burning fuel to decrease the weight of the plane so it could land properly, according to FOX 13.

More than three hours later, United flight 2051 landed safely at Tampa International Airport, ABC Action News reported. The FAA will investigate the incident.

A screen shot of the tracked path of the flight from Flight Aware was obtained by ABC Action News, which showed the plane circled over the water several times before returning to the airport.

No injuries were reported and the passengers were placed on another flight to San Francisco on Thursday afternoon, according to Spectrum Bay News 9.

This story was originally published March 16, 2018 at 4:31 PM with the headline "Their flight took off from Tampa only to circle over the Gulf for hours and land right where they started."