Exclusive reports from insiders at Hong Kong International (HKG) airport, have arose stating a Cathay Pacific Boeing 777 aircraft has received tailplane damage after colliding with an Airbus A350 aircraft yesterday, 15 April 2020.
So what exactly happened?
It is thought that the Airbus A350 belonging to Cathay Pacific, was being towed on the ground – having shortly arrived at the airport – when the incident occurred. Images from the scene showed the impact on the tailplane of the Boeing 777 aircraft, and the starboard (right) winglet of the Airbus A350 aircraft, with damage to the shape and metalwork of the aircraft – Including cracks.
It is said that the airports Ground Controller received a call at 12:30pm (local time) alerting them to the incident that had occurred on Taxiway J – a taxiway dedicated for aircraft storage amidst the Coronavirus pandemic – No passengers are believed to have been onboard either aircraft at the time of the incident.
In a comment provided to Travel Radar, Cathay Pacific said:
“Cathay Pacific confirms that there was a towing incident involving two aircraft at the airport this afternoon. There were no flight crew or passengers on board the aircraft. The airline will follow up with the services provider.”
Not the first incident this week…
Today’s report comes following a similar report at Dubai International earlier in the week, where a British Airways A350 (G-XWGB) collided with an Emirates 777 during pushback from stand. In the earlier incident, the aircraft was also being towed when it made impact with a parked 777 aircraft – in this case, belonging to UAE flag carrier, Emirates. Neither aircraft had any passengers onboard at the time of the incident.
What are your thoughts on these two recent incidents? Let us know in the comments below!
Updates as they come in:
- 3:00pm UTC- The incident is confirmed to have occured on ‘Taxiway J’ which is being used to store aircraft
- 3:40pm UTC- The aircraft registration of the Cathay 777 is now confirmed as B-KPD
- 5:21pm UTC- Cathay Pacific confirm the incident in an initial statement to Travel Radar
