TWO planes collided before takeoff, just weeks after a similar accident occurred on a plane carrying members of Congress.
The incident happened when a United Airlines flight was pushing back from its gate and struck another plane.
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As United Airlines Flight 863 was leaving the gate, its right wingtip struck the left wingtip of United Airlines Flight 877.
None of the 202 passengers and 16 crew members aboard flight 863 sustained injuries, and the 306 passengers and 16 crew members aboard flight 877.
The accident occurred just after midnight on Monday at the San Francisco Airport.
In an Air Traffic Control recording, the ramp controller can be heard telling the 863 pilot that the plane is “pushing pretty deep” and to ensure that the 877 flight is watching, local ABC affiliate KGO reported.
“No injuries occurred and passengers on both planes deplaned normally,” a United Airlines spokesperson said in a statement on Monday.
“We are working with our customers to rebook them on other flights.”
Flight 863 was headed for Sydney, Australia, when it clipped Flight 877, which was headed for Hong Kong.
The collision mirrors a similar accident on April 10 at the Washington National Airport, when two jets clipped each other during takeoff.
“The wingtip of American Airlines Flight 5490 struck American Airlines Flight 4522 on a taxiway at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport around 12:45 p.m. local time on Thursday, April 10,” the Federal Aviation Administration told The U.S. Sun.
“Flight 5490, a Bombardier CRJ 900, was headed to Charleston International Airport in South Carolina. Flight 4522, an Embraer E175, was headed to JFK International Airport in New York.
“The FAA will investigate. Please contact the airline for additional information.”
Flight 4552, headed to JFK, was carrying numerous New York congresspeople who posted live updates on the situation.
“Serving in Congress has come with some once in a lifetime experiences… like just now while stationary on the runway at DCA, another plane just bumped into our wing,” New York Representative Nick LaLota posted on X.
“Heading back to the gate, but thankfully everyone is ok! (And @RepGraceMeng is handing out grapes!).”
New York Democratic representative Grace Meng replied: “Glad my colleagues and I are okay! We are safely waiting on the tarmac, but we may need more snacks.”
The plane that the members of Congress were on was carrying 67 customers and four crew members, all of whom were uninjured.
US on edge over ‘cluster’ of plane crashes
A series of devastating plane crashes, including the mid-air collision above DC that killed 67, has left Americans terrified of traveling by air.
However, aviation expert and attorney Jason Matzus told The U.S. Sun the crashes can be attributed to “random clustering.”
“While these events are tragic, the likely explanation is simply ‘random clustering,’ which occurs when multiple crashes occur over a short period, warping our general perception and causing us to think that there is an increasing trend in plane crashes,” Matzus said.
“When in reality these crashes, despite being so close together, are merely coincidental and not caused by a systemic safety issue.”
The short period Matzus referred to was just a matter of three weeks. The aviation mishaps included:
January 29 – A military helicopter and American Airlines plane collided at the Washington DC airport, killing 67 people
January 31 – An air ambulance carrying a 6-year-old girl and her mom crashed on a street in Philadelphia, killing seven people in total
February 5 – A Japan Airlines flight hit a parked Delta plane at Seattle SeaTac Airport and no one was injured
February 6 – A small commuter plane on its way to Nome, Alaska, crashed killing all 10 people on board
February 10 – Motley Crue singer Vince Neil’s private jet collided with another plane, killing the pilot and injuring four others
February 17 – A Delta plane crashed on the runway at Toronto Pearson International Airport, miraculously killing no one but injuring 21
February 19 – Two planes collided at Marana Airport in Arizona, killing two people
February 24 – Smoke filled a Delta Airlines flight cabin forcing passengers to evacuate by a slide after making an emergency landing in Atlanta
March 9 – A Beechcraft Bonanza aircraft crashed into a retirement village parking lot in Manheim, Pennsylvania
March 13 – An American Airlines jet engine erupted into flames at the Denver airport, forcing passengers to escape onto the plane’s wing
“Safety is our top priority, and we apologize to our customers for their experience,” the airline wrote in an email.
The collision led to some congressmembers aboard calling for a change in the aviation space.
“While waiting to take off on the runway at DCA just now, another plane struck our wing. Thankfully, everyone is safe,” he wrote.
“Just a reminder: Recent cuts to the FAA weaken our skies and public safety.”