United 737 Clips a Delta A321 on Tarmac at Boston’s Logan Airport
A United Airlines plane clipped a stationary Delta Air Lines plane at Boston Logan International Airport on Friday. The incident, which occurred on the tarmac, was captured on video by a passenger and has raised concerns about runway safety.
According to a spokesperson from United Airlines, the winglet of a United aircraft made contact with the tail of a Delta plane. The footage, shared on Twitter by Breaking Aviation News & Videos, shows the slow-moving United plane’s wing clipping the tail of the parked Delta plane.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reported that the collision took place around 7:20 p.m. The United plane was taxiing to a holding pad, while the Delta plane was stationary at the pad. Alex Wilson, a passenger on the Delta plane, described the impact as feeling like a brief earthquake. Emergency trucks were dispatched to the scene, and the Delta plane was towed back to its original gate.
The FAA had previously issued an “aviation safety call to action” in March, urging airlines to review safety procedures and runway information following a series of runway incursions. Although the number of incidents hadn’t increased, the FAA expressed concern about their potential severity.
Fortunately, there were no reported passenger injuries in the collision. The United plane, a Boeing 737 Max 9, was scheduled for a flight to Newark, while the Delta plane, an Airbus 321, was bound for Detroit. The affected United passengers, numbering 128, were accommodated on alternative flights.
The FAA has launched an investigation into the incident to determine the cause and assess any potential safety lapses. Delta Airlines expressed apologies for the delay caused by the collision. Passengers were provided with pizza while awaiting a replacement flight, which was operated by the same pilots and flight attendants.
The FAA’s investigation aims to ensure that such incidents are prevented in the future, prioritizing the safety of passengers and maintaining runway operations.