Passengers were 'freaking out' during the incident which took place on the tarmac
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Two people were left injured after airplanes collided on the tarmac at a Florida airport following travel chaos in American airports.
The crash occurred at Miami International Airport when the wingtip of a Copa Airlines Boeing 737 struck the nose of a UPS Boeing 767 while both airplanes were taxiing at approximately 9:15pm on November 14, per the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
Eyewitnesses recounted hearing a “collective scream” before feeling the impact of the incoming aircraft.
Copa passenger Cesar Ferreira said: “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 and then the impact of another aircraft hitting ours.”
According to Ferreira, passengers “started freaking out” when they felt their plane “jerk abruptly sideways.” However, the Copa crew were able to calm everyone and get them to remain seated.
More visuals from the location which shows extensive damage to both the aircraft that led to grounding of them.#aircraft https://t.co/A5jE0HZSfm pic.twitter.com/VVv9TpPUyF
The incident is being investigated, as according to the FAA air traffic controllers had told UPS to give way to the Copa flight before the collision.
Audio from air traffic control shows the Copa Airlines pilot saying “somebody hit us,” before the UPS pilot says: “Yeah, we went too far, and then he, he clipped us with the wing.”
Copa Airlines has said it “regrets the disruption this incident may cause our passengers. The safety of our passengers and crew is our top priority, and we will cooperate with authorities as they investigate.”
UPS has said it is “committed to working with authorities to determine what happened.”
The Copa Airlines flight lost its left wingtip, and was towed to the gate where its 166 passengers and six crew disembarked.
The UPS plane was left with a crumpled nose and holes in its panels.
Fire and rescue teams treated two people with minor injuries at the scene.
This collision comes after the FAA initiated an unprecedented nationwide groundstop on November 13.
Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy reassured the public that the airspace issues were caused by maintenance issues, not a cyber attack.
The stop was put in place after Transportation Department teams switched decades-old copper wiring for new fibre-optic cables.
Speaking during a press conference on Saturday, Secretary Duffy said that systems are now functioning normally and have remained stable in recent hours.
However, he warned that "systems will continue to break" amid ongoing upgrades to the old wire.
According to Secretary Duffy, the work to upgrade systems has been ongoing for many years.
The groundstop was the largest since 9/11 and also affected international travellers who were unable to reach the US while flights were grounded.