Photo: Probe Launched After Two Planes Clip Each Other at Newark Airport
© AP Photo / Craig RuttleChristopher Rhoads, Manager of Airport Operations/Aviation at LaGuardia Airport in New York, stands near an American Airlines passenger jet being served at gate 30, Wednesday, March 24, 2021, near newer construction at the airport, part of a multi-year, multi-billion dollar project that will modernize almost the entirety of the airport's departure and arrival terminals.
© AP Photo / Craig Ruttle
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Officials said that one of the planes was full of passengers when the accident occurred at the New Jersey airport.
Two planes clipped each other’s wings at Newark Liberty International Airport on Friday morning and has since prompted an investigation from the Federal Aviation Administration as it becomes the latest in a series of recent incidents at a tri-state area airport.
The incident occurred at about 8:45 a.m. local time when a United Airlines Boeing 757 bound for Orlando, Florida, was parked at a gate, waiting for departure. The Boeing then had its left wing clipped by the right wing of a much larger United Boeing 787 plane as it was being towed to its next gate, officials said. The collision caused the tip of the wing to snap off.
Passengers who were on the Orlando-bound plane were able to deplane, and no injuries were reported. There were no passengers on the larger plane.
Ok..I have heard cars clipping another car while reversing from a parking lot .but a plane???..well just that happened in my flight..out of ewr to Orlando..our flight clipped another flight wings while getting into the gate..wtf!!!! @united pic.twitter.com/KbNbZLINot
— Bala (@balasankaran) February 3, 2023
Eyewitness Rebecca Blum said she was on the Boeing 757 when it had just returned to the gate due a maintenance issue.
She then felt a “jolt… looked outside and saw as clear as day the wing of a larger plane had clipped our wing. Definitely heard it.” She added that passengers could “mildly” feel the collision, but the sound of the crash was more significant.
After the collision, the pilot came on the overhead speaker and astutely announced: “Obviously, our wing has been clipped.”
"The United Flight 2135 was struck by a Boeing 787, a Dreamliner, that arrived from Johannesburg, South Africa earlier in the morning. The much larger plane was being relocated by a tug when it made contact with the smaller Boeing 757, parked at the gate,” the FAA said in their statement.
The Port Authority Police Aircraft Rescue Fire Fighter Unit (PAPD ARFF) and passengers were able to make their next flight at 11:40 AM.
This is the third incident to take place at a Tri-State Area airport in the past month.
In mid-January an American Airlines plane crossed in front of a Delta plane while accelerating to take off, the incident almost resulted in a disaster. The pilot punched his brakes and missed the American Airlines plane by about 1,000 feet.
Then, a few days later, a JetBlue flight preparing for takeoff at Kennedy Airport collided with the tail of a parked JetBlue plane while it was pushing back from the gate. This did not result in any injuries.