Kite strikes United Airlines plane as it was approaching Reagan National runway in metro DC
A kite struck a United Airlines plane as it was approaching Reagan National Airport in metro Washington, D.C., on Saturday.
The airline said in a statement to USA TODAY on Monday that it was "aware of reports that a kite struck UA flight 654 from Houston to Reagan Airport" in Arlington, Virginia.
Fortunately, the "aircraft landed safely," and "customers deplaned normally," the airline said, adding that there was no damage to the aircraft.
Here's what we know.
Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said in a statement Monday that officers responded to reports of kite-flying on Saturday at Gravelly Point, a National Park Service site in Arlington, Virginia, just a few hundred feet away from the north end of Reagan National's runway. The agency said that kite-flying isn't allowed in the area "due to the danger to low-flying aircraft."
The agency's police department patrols Reagan National and Dulles International airports, according to the agency's website.
The agency said that responding officers warned "some individuals about flying kites and briefly confiscated a kite." However, the kite was returned to the owner shortly after and no charges were filed.
In an audio recording from LiveATC.com, an air traffic controller was heard referring to the kite, WUSA9 reported.
'You were telling me those details about the kite, whether it was over the park?" the person could be heard saying. "How high was it?'
In response, a person, presumably the pilot, responded: 'It was over the park about 100 feet over the ground, it looked like it was right on the flight deck. Those guys were a little bit low."
The incident occurred the same day as the Blossom Kite Festival on the National Mall as part of the National Cherry Blossom Festival, held annually to celebrate the cherry blossom season. It not immediately clear if the kite was part of the festival. However, festival organizers told DC News Now that the kite-flying activity at Gravelly Point had no connection to the event.
Saturday's incident comes just two months after an American Airlines plane collided with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter above the Potomac River in a deadly crash that killed 67 people.
Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@gannett.com and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kite hits United Airlines plane on approach to Reagan National
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