Delta Jets Damaged After Collision on Taxiway in Atlanta

The wing of an Airbus A350 struck the tail of Endeavor Bombardier CRJ-900, shearing it off.

Runways and the Control Tower at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson Airport. [File Photo: Shutterstock]

Two Delta Air Lines jets were damaged on the ground at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (KATL) when they collided Tuesday morning.

The wing of an Airbus A350 struck the tail of Endeavor Bombardier CRJ-900, shearing it off. 

The CRJ-900 was operated by Endeavor Air, a Delta subsidiary, according to AirlineGeeks.com.

According to a spokesperson from Delta, the Airbus was taxiing out when it made contact with the smaller jet on an adjacent runway, "resulting in damage to the tail of the regional jet and the wing of the A350."

The impact "resulted in the vertical and horizontal stabilizer of the CRJ being severed from the aircraft," a spokesperson from the FAA told FLYING. The agency, along with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), is investigating the accident.

No injuries were reported on either flight. The Airbus, which was en route as DL295 to Tokyo-Haneda Airport (RJTT) had 221 on board while the CRJ-900 headed to Lafayette, Louisiana, had 56 on board. Both aircraft returned to the terminal and the customers rebooked on other flights.

Photographs on social media show the tail of the CRJ900 torn from its vertical position and laying across the empennage of the aircraft.

Meg Godlewski has been an aviation journalist for more than 24 years and a CFI for more than 20 years. If she is not flying or teaching aviation, she is writing about it. Meg is a founding member of the Pilot Proficiency Center at EAA AirVenture and excels at the application of simulation technology to flatten the learning curve. Follow Meg on Twitter @2Lewski.

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