Two United Airlines planes clip wings while preparing to depart San Francisco International Airport, according to the FAA
United Airlines Flight 863, which was headed for Sydney, Australia, was pushing back from the gate at San Francisco International Airport early Tuesday when its right wingtip struck the left wingtip of United Flight 877, headed for Hong Kong, the FAA said in a statement to CNN.
The incident occurred about 12:30 a.m. local time 'in an area where air traffic controllers do not communicate with flight crews,' the FAA added.
'No injuries occurred and passengers on both planes deplaned normally,' a United Airlines spokesperson said in a statement. 'We are working with our customers to rebook them on other flights.'
The FAA also is investigating an incident last month at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport involving two American Airlines regional jets that bumped wings.
'The wingtip of American Airlines Flight 5490 struck American Airlines Flight 4522 on a taxiway … around 12:45 p.m,' the FAA said in a statement.
Flight 5490 was headed to Charleston, South Carolina, while Flight 4522 was headed to JFK International Airport in New York with seven members of Congress onboard.
The April incident came as the Washington airport is coping with a series of recent incidents, including a mid-air collision in January that left 67 people dead and a military flyover in March that came dangerously close to a departing plane. The latter prompted a federal investigation focusing on an air traffic control communications breakdown.
For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
%3Amax_bytes(150000)%3Astrip_icc()%2FTAL-lead-image-EMERGENCYEXIT0625-7c5e169571e04144a14046ef2de88d94.jpg&w=3840&q=100)
Travel + Leisure
16 hours ago
- Travel + Leisure
Why Pilots Say It's 'Impossible' to Open a Plane Door in the Air—and the Consequences Are Very Serious If You Try
The most important thing in the exit row on a plane isn't the extra legroom—it's the emergency door. These doors are strategically located throughout the aircraft so that passengers can easily evacuate, regardless of whether they're in first class or the last row. The Airbus A380—the world's largest commercial aircraft—has 16 emergency doors. That's approximately one for every 50 passengers. While part of the flight attendant safety speech includes pointing out where the nearest emergency doors can be found, it doesn't include the answer to one burning question. What happens if you try to open the emergency door mid-flight? If you ask American Airlines First Officer Steve Scheibner, nothing would happen if you tried to open the door—because you can't open the emergency door mid-flight. Unless you're capable of lifting 25,000 pounds, it's physically impossible. 'Once this door gets pressurized in flight, it's nine pounds per square inch,' says Scheibner, who goes by Captain Steeeve on TikTok where he has more than 380,000 followers. Another pilot-turned-social media sensation explains it further on YouTube: 'We pressurize our aircraft to a lower altitude so that you guys can breathe,' says Pilot PascalKlr. 'The inside pressure pushes the door in its frame.' Scientists liken it to how a drain plug works. Given the small size of sink and bath drains, it takes a substantial amount of effort to pick them up. Also, most emergency exit doors on planes open inwards. Still, physics isn't the only thing keeping emergency doors closed during flights. On most commercial aircraft, all cabin doors automatically lock once the plane has reached a certain speed. According to Scheibner, it's approximately 80 knots (92 miles per hour). They can't be manually unlocked until the plane slows down again. Obviously, these locks weren't customary back in 1971 when the infamous 'D.B. Cooper' parachuted out of a Boeing 727's rear door with $200,000 in cash somewhere over southeastern Washington. In fact, because hijacking passenger planes was common in the late '60s and early '70s, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) amended their safety regulations in 1972 and started requiring large passenger aircraft exits to be designed so that they can't be opened during flight. Exit sign in an airplane. Margot Cavin/Travel + Leisure Even though it's not possible to open an emergency door mid-flight, people have tried. In fact, every year passengers make headlines for trying to do so. In May, an All Nippon Airways flight from Tokyo to Houston was diverted to Seattle after an unruly passenger kept trying to open the emergency doors. Cabin crew and fellow passengers managed to restrain him using zip ties. Upon landing in Seattle, the passenger was handed over to the local police and FBI. And when an American Airlines passenger on a flight from Albuquerque to Chicago tried to open an emergency door 20 minutes into their flight last year, the plane returned to Albuquerque where law enforcement was waiting. If the plane isn't far from its final destination, it will usually try to land there. That's what happened on another American Airlines flight in 2024 when a passenger flying from Milwaukee to Dallas attempted to open an emergency door mid-flight. A flight attendant was injured in the process, and the man was charged with a federal crime. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison. At the very least, trying to open an emergency door mid-flight is a great way to get yourself on the dreaded no-fly list. While most passengers who try to open emergency doors fail, at least one appears to have succeeded. In 2023, a passenger on an Asiana flight about to land in Daegu, South Korea, allegedly opened the emergency door he was sitting next to. The plane was more than 700 feet off the ground at the time. While the plane was able to safely land, and no one was seriously injured, 12 people went to the hospital and were treated for hyperventilation. 'The wind was stinging my legs and hitting my face so hard I couldn't even breathe properly,' the passenger sitting next to him recalled in an interview with CNN. Asiana immediately launched an investigation to see how the door was able to be opened. It also issued a statement saying it would stop selling certain exit row seats on its Airbus A321-200 aircraft. But this doesn't exactly mean that sitting next to an emergency door is dangerous. On the contrary, some experts say the exit row boasts the safest seats on the plane. 'If there was a seat that was safer, being close to an emergency exit increases the chance of getting out quicker,' Cary Grant, an assistant professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University's College of Aviation, previously told T+L.
Indianapolis Star
2 days ago
- Indianapolis Star
Remains of World War II soldier from Indianapolis return home 81 years later
The remains of World War II U.S. Army Pvt. LeRoy B. Miller Jr. are escorted by Flanner Buchanan on Aug. 15, 2025, in Indianapolis. Jade Jackson/IndyStar Family members of World War II soldier LeRoy B. Miller Jr. are escorted away from an American Airlines flight that carried his remains by U.S. Army Sgt 1st Class Jean Chong and Casualty Assistance Officer, Corey Akers on Aug. 15, 2025, in Indianapolis. Jade Jackson/IndyStar Jade Jackson/IndyStar From left, Claudia Hamilton, Michael Hamilton, Lance Hamilton, Fayette Moore, Avila Moore and Jeffrey Parker, the family of U.S. Army Pvt. LeRoy B. Miller Jr., watch as his remains are unloaded from an American Airlines flight on Aug. 15, 2025, in Indianapolis. Jade Jackson/IndyStar Michael Hamilton and Claudia Hamilton watch as an American Airlines flight carrying the remains of U.S. Army Pvt. LeRoy B. Miller Jr. lands on Aug. 15, 2025, in Indianapolis. Jade Jackson/IndyStar Public safety officials including law enforcement and Indianapolis International Airport fire crews salute as the remains of a World War II soldier are unloaded from an American Airlines flight on Aug. 15, 2025, in Indianapolis. Jade Jackson/IndyStar
CBS News
2 days ago
- CBS News
Newark Airport donating gate sign to Flight 93 National Memorial in Pennsylvania
The sign that marked the gate number for United Flight 93 at Newark Airport is getting a permanent home in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where the plane crashed. This comes less than a month before we mark 24 years since the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Just before the North Tower was struck at 8:42 a.m., United Flight 93 out of Newark Airport's Gate A17 took off for San Francisco. About 45 minutes in, it was hijacked, believed to have been pivoted towards the White House. A group of passengers, having already known about the World Trade Center attacks, quickly plotted to regain control of the cockpit, which ultimately led it to crash into a field in Pennsylvania, killing all 40 passengers and crew members on board. "Common citizens right underneath this gate who thought they were gonna go about their ordinary day transformed into extraordinary heroes," said Adam Shaffer, the National Park Service's chief of interpretation, education and visitor experience. "What those numbers and letters reflect to us is such a powerful impact to what the human soul and condition for survival and preventing death and destruction of others," said Chief Thomas Wieczerzak with Newark Airport Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting. Port Authority lost 84 of its employees on 9/11, more than 30 of which were members of its police department. In 2002, Newark International Airport was renamed Newark Liberty International Airport in honor of those who died. The Gate A17 sign has been kept at the Port Authority administrative building since the construction of Newark Airport's new Terminal A. Port Authority is now donating the sign to the Flight 93 National Memorial. "Some of our employees are a little bit choked up this morning about the sign leaving. Its meaning is gonna stay with us forever," said Jon Gooda, United Airlines' vice president of Newark Airport operations. The sign will educate future generations of Flight 93 National Memorial visitors. "We need to remember every bit of it, every person's story from that day. And this is what's doing that," Wieczerzak said. The National Parks Service is still determining where and when exactly the sign will be displayed at the memorial.
