Which bird holds the record for the highest altitude flight?

Rüppell's vulture holds the record for the highest altitude flight by a bird, reaching about 11,300 metres above sea level. The record came from an extraordinary 29 November 1973 incident over Abidjan, Ivory Coast, when a Rüppell's vulture collided with a commercial aircraft. Feather fragments recovered from an engine were sufficient to identify the bird.

Rüppell's vulture, also called Rüppell's griffon vulture, is native mainly to the Sahel and East Africa. Like other vultures, it uses rising air currents to soar while searching for carrion, conserving energy over long distances. Its blood contains a specialised haemoglobin variant with a strong affinity for oxygen, an adaptation that helps it function in thin air.

The bar-headed goose is a common alternative because it regularly crosses the Himalayas at remarkable heights, with some flights documented above 7,000 metres. The Alpine chough and golden eagle are also capable high-altitude flight, but neither matches the vulture's confirmed record. The record concerns documented altitude, not the bird's normal cruising height: Rüppell's vultures usually fly much lower and are rarely seen above 6,000 metres.