American Airlines Flight Collides With Tug Vehicle At Charlotte Airport

UPDATE: 8:30 a.m. EDT — A representative from Charlotte-Douglas International Airport told International Business Times in an emailed statement that Terminal E was not closed after American Airlines flight 5233 collided with a tug vehicle on the tarmac Wednesday.

“This incident occurred at approximately 4pm (EST) Wednesday afternoon on the ramp. The scene was cleared within the hour. The terminal never closed and the Airport remained open and operational. Some regional gates were impacted and not available during the incident,” the statement reads.

Original story:

An American Airlines flight which landed at the Charlotte-Douglas International Airport, North Carolina, collided with a tug vehicle on the tarmac on Wednesday which injured the driver of the vehicle and caused Terminal E of the airport to close down, reports said.

The incident occurred after Flight #5233 of the American Airlines flying in from Charleston, West Virginia, landed at the airport at 3:40 p.m. EDT. While pulling into Gate E35, it collided with a tug vehicle on a ramp near Terminal E.

According to NBC affiliate WCNC, there were 31 passengers and three crew members on the plane at the time. One of them took the following photo of the crash and shared it on social media. As seen in the picture, the wing which crashed into the tug vehicle was damaged.

While none of the people present on the flight at the time were harmed, the woman who was driving the tug vehicle at the time had to be hospitalized. The woman was later said to be in a stable condition. According to multiple witnesses present on the scene, the female driver made a sharp turn while steering the vehicle and as a result collided with the plane’s wing.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which is investigating the incident, said in a statement: “PSA Airlines 5223, CL600-2B aircraft, and a tug collided on the north ramp at Charlotte Douglas International Airport at 4:35 pm today. The collision occurred while the aircraft was taxiing to the gate after landing. The aircraft and tug are blocking several gates.”

“The fire department, along with medical personnel, responded immediately, and the tug driver was transported to the hospital in stable condition,” American Airlines said in a statement, Patch reported. "Customers should expect some residual flight delays for regional flights departing and arriving Charlotte."

Flights which were scheduled to take off from the terminal were also delayed due to the “serious incident” at the airport. YouTuber and author Chris Strub was on one of the American Airlines flights that were delayed following the incident at the airport.

According to his stream of tweets, the airlines gave the passengers the “option to deplane” after the incident at the airport. Many of the flights which were scheduled to depart from Gate E35 had to be delayed due to the emergency services gathered at the scene, reports said.

North part of Terminal E was expected to remain closed until the FAA and National Transportation Safety Board complete their investigation.

International Business Times has reached out to Charlotte International Airport for a statement regarding the latest update on the matter.

Most recently, American Airlines was forced to cancel thousands of flights between Sept. 7 and Sept. 11 due to Hurricane Irma that wrecked the Caribbean Islands before weakening and moving toward Florida and other parts of the United States.

Earlier this week, a number of flights flying out from North Carolina to Tampa and Orlando were canceled due to severe weathering conditions. The airlines said in a statement to Global News at the time that it will continue to “evaluate operations at other Florida airports, including Sarasota and Tampa, and will make adjustments as necessary.”