Terrifying video footage captured the moment a passenger jet collided with a truck during its landing at a major US airport.
United Airlines Flight 169 was approaching Newark Liberty International Airport on May 3 when it hit a light pole on the nearby New Jersey Turnpike, as per reports. New footage revealed that the plane also struck a bakery truck.
The flight, inbound from Venice, Italy, was on its final approach to Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey. The United Airlines Boeing 767 was traveling at over 257km per hour as it crossed over the turnpike just outside the airport, according to Flightradar24.
An initial investigation indicated that the plane’s landing gear tire and the underside of the aircraft collided with a pole and a tractor-trailer. The pole then hit a Jeep, according to a statement from New Jersey State Police spokesman SFC Charles Marchan.
The tractor-trailer driver sustained minor injuries and was taken to a local hospital. Dashcam footage from the bakery truck showed the truck driving north on the turnpike to deliver bread products to a Newark airport depot when the incident occurred.
The impact of the plane’s landing gear on the truck caused the vehicle to shake and glass to shatter. The truck driver, Warren Boardley, was hospitalized with minor injuries but was later discharged.
Fortunately, no passengers on the flight were harmed. Reports suggested that the pilots and air traffic control were unaware of the incident at the time.
The aircraft was instructed to taxi to the gate while other planes continued landing on the runway. Air traffic controllers notified an operations vehicle of a “hole in the side of the plane” about 30 minutes after the landing for inspection.
United Airlines stated that their maintenance team was assessing the aircraft’s damage and pledged to conduct a thorough flight safety investigation into the matter. The plane’s crew has been sidelined pending the investigation.
