Super Bowl-bound plane damaged after collision in Boston
BOSTON — Two JetBlue planes made contact Thursday morning at Boston Logan International Airport, with one wingtip touching another plane’s tail.
No one was hurt and both flights were canceled, Jennifer Mehigan of the Massachusetts Port Authority said in an email.
The left winglet of JetBlue Flight 777 struck the right horizontal stabilizer of JetBlue Flight 551 around 6:40 a.m. while both Airbus 321 jets were on the de-icing pad, in an area of the tarmac controlled by the airline, according to the Federal Aviation Authority, which opened an investigation.
Mehigan said the planes “made contact while in the de-icing area” and described the collision as “very minor.” Passengers said they were moved onto other aircraft.
Brian O’Neil, who was flying to the Super Bowl, said his plane was following a vehicle to the de-icing areas when he noticed it was “super close” to another plane parked in the area.
“After we passed, we felt a bump and the captain came over the loudspeaker to say we had just clipped the other plane,” said O’Neil, who has since boarded a new flight to Las Vegas. “To me, it felt like we ran something over.”
JetBlue confirmed the incident and said the flights to Las Vegas and Orlando would operate on other aircraft while both planes are out of service for repairs. “Safety is JetBlue’s priority, and we will work to determine how and why this incident occurred,” the statement said.