Two planes collide on runway at Amsterdam airport causing delays
AMSTERDAM - Two planes have collided on the runway at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport, causing hours of delay for hundreds of passengers. An easyJet Airbus A320 bound for London and a KLM Boeing 737800 heading to Madrid were both reversing away from their gates a process called pushback when they collided yesterday morning.
Photographs taken by travellers on both planes showed that the easyJet aircraft’s wing appeared to become lodged on the stabilisers at the tail end of the other plane. A passenger onboard the easyJet flight told the Press Association he had experienced “a bit of a jolt” after the collision but thought it was “nothing unusual”. Travellers on the plane had to wait for more than an hour on the tarmac while ground staff worked out how to deal with the incident, he said.
They then faced a further delay of about four hours, but he added: “I’m just happy everyone is ok.” Passengers on the KLM service to Madrid were more swiftly put on a replacement plane. Both aircraft involved in the collision have been withdrawn from service for inspection. “EasyJet can confirm that two aircraft made contact during pushback from stand, one of which was easyJet flight EJU8868 from Amsterdam to London Gatwick,” the company said in a statement.
“Passengers have now disembarked into the terminal where they have been provided with updates and refreshment vouchers. The flight is now due to be operated by a replacement aircraft. “The safety of its passengers and crew is easyJet’s highest priority and an investigation has been launched in line with procedure to understand what happened.” KLM, the Dutch national carrier, tweeted: “This morning a KLM Boeing 737800 hit another aircraft during the pushback at the gate. The passengers were not in danger and were taken off board. After a delay of 2.5 hours the passengers left with another aircraft. It is being investigated how the situation could have arisen.” (The Guardian)