During a rough Friday
night at New
York’s LaGuardia Airport, two United
Airlines planes carrying a combined 343 people bumped into each other on
the taxiway amid high winds and widespread travel delays caused by air
traffic controller shortages.
United confirmed to
The
Independent that a plane arriving from Chicago O’Hare “made contact” with
the tail of another United jet that was stationary and waiting to depart for
Houston around 7:45 p.m. Both aircraft returned to the gate after the incident,
and all passengers deplaned safely. No injuries were reported among the 328
passengers and 15 crew members on board, the airline said in a statement.
“We all felt a
bump during taxi to the runway but didn’t know it was another plane until the
captain said it was,” one passenger told the New
York Post shortly after the collision.
FAA spokeswoman
Kristen Alsop told Newsday
that it will investigate the incident, but noted that “FAA air traffic control
is not responsible for plane movements in the gate area” where the collision
occurred.
Weather and
Staffing Problems Collide
The minor crash
came at the end of a chaotic day at LaGuardia, where strong winds — with gusts
reaching up to 50 mph — and staffing shortages had already thrown flight
schedules into disarray.
The National
Weather Service had issued a wind advisory through midnight, prompting ground stops
at the New Jersey hub. The average ground delay that evening was two hours and
15 minutes, with some flights delayed as long as five hours.
More than 100
flights were canceled between Friday night and early Saturday morning, FlightAware data
showed. Overall, more than 590 flights were delayed at LaGuardia that day, with 132
total cancellations at the airport.
Government Shutdown
Adds To the Strain
The tarmac mishap
unfolded as airports across the U.S. continue grappling with staffing shortages
brought on by the ongoing
government shutdown. As essential workers, TSA employees and air traffic controllers
are currently working without pay, adding pressure to already thin ranks.
“Currently, half
of our Core 30 facilities are experiencing staffing shortages, and nearly 80
percent of air traffic controllers are absent at New York–area facilities,” the
FAA said in a statement published Friday night. “After 31 days without pay, air
traffic controllers are under immense stress and fatigue. The shutdown must end
so that these controllers receive the pay they’ve earned and travelers can
avoid further disruptions and delays.”
Transportation
Secretary Sean Duffy also warned that the situation could quickly
deteriorate further if the shutdown persists, calling the potential
consequences for air travel “a disaster waiting to happen”, in comments
reported by the New
York Post.
An Emerging
Pattern?
Friday’s accident
marks the second time in roughly one month that planes have collided on the
ground at LaGuardia. As Newsday
noted, an earlier October incident involving two jets operated by a Delta
Air Lines subsidiary sent a flight attendant to the hospital.
No one was injured
this time, but with high winds, long delays and fatigued workers all in the
mix, the near miss highlights the mounting operational stress facing airports
amid the ongoing government shutdown.
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