Two people injured after wingtip of Copa Airlines Boeing 737 struck nose of United Parcel Service Boeing 767
Two planes collided with one another on a taxiway at Miami’s international airport on Saturday night – a day after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an hours-long nationwide ground stop due to communication issues affecting multiple air traffic control centers.
In a statement, the Trump administration-led FAA said the wingtip of a Copa Airlines Boeing 737 struck the nose of a United Parcel Service Boeing 767 “while the airplanes were taxiing at Miami International Airport”.
Two people reportedly had minor injuries in the collision and subsequently received medical treatment.
The FAA said it was investigating the matter, which was reported at about 9pm local time.
According to the FAA, air traffic controllers had told the UPS crew to give way to the Copa flight before the collision. “The Copa flight was taxiing to the gate and the UPS flight was taxiing for departure to Bogotá, Colombia,” the FAA said.
A passenger on the Copa flight, Cesar Ferreira, spoke to CNN about how screams from those around him clued him in to the emergency.
“We were taxiing after landing at a normal speed when, all of a sudden, I heard the chatter around me getting louder – followed by a collective scream…
