Two American Airlines jet have had a minor collision on the ground at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport – just three months after a deadly crash near there.
The Federal Aviation Administration said the wingtip of one aircraft struck another on the taxiway on Thursday afternoon. Six members of Congress were aboard one of the jets.
Nick LaLota, a New York Republican, said no-one was hurt when the wing of their stationary plane was “bumped” by another jet.
Sixty-seven people died on 29 January when an Army helicopter collided in midair with a jetliner as it landed at the same airport.
LaLota posted on X: “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.”
“Heading back to the gate, but thankfully everyone is ok,” LaLota added.
He said his colleague, Grace Meng, a New York Democrat, was handing out grapes to passengers on the plane.
She posted on X: “I’m grateful no one was hurt today.”
In addition to Meng and LaLota, congressman Gregory Meeks, a New York Democrat and congressman Josh Gottheimer, a New Jersey Democrat, confirmed they were on board the flight, too.
Two of those lawmakers said that New York congressmen Adriano Espaillat and Ritchie Torres, both Democrats, were also aboard that craft.
The Federal Aviation Administration said: “The wingtip of American Airlines Flight 5490 struck American Airlines Flight 4522 on a taxiway at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport around 12:45pm local time on Thursday, April 10.
“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.”
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport said in a statement that there was no impact on flight operations, and both aircraft returned to gates with no injuries reported.
American Airlines said 76 customers were aboard Flight 5490 and 67 customers were on the other plane, and no injuries were reported.
“Safety is our top priority,” the airline said in an emailed statement, “and we apologize to our customers for their experience.”
“Both aircraft taxied to the terminal and have been taken out of service to be inspected by our maintenance teams,” the statement continued. “The damage was limited to a winglet on each aircraft.”
An investigation is still ongoing into January’s deadly crash involving an American Airlines flight from Wichita, Kansas, that was landing at Reagan National Airport when it collided with a Sikorsky H-60 Black Hawk helicopter.
The cause of that disaster remains unknown, but a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recommended that some helicopter operations near the airport be banned. (BBC)
