One plane collided with another at a snow-covered Hokkaido airport on Tuesday, just weeks after a deadly runway fire in Tokyo, according to the airline involved.
No one was injured in Tuesday’s incident, which involved Korean Air and Cathay Pacific aircraft. According to Japanese public broadcaster NHK, the incident happened at New Chitose Airport around 5:30 p.m. local time. NHK footage of him at the airport — There were warnings of delays and cancellations early in the day. Due to the heavy snowfall, a thick coating was visible on the ground.
Cathay Pacific said its aircraft was “hit by a taxiing Korean Air A330,” adding in a statement that the plane was parked and had no passengers or crew on board at the time.
Korean Air confirmed that its jet made “contact” with the Cathay plane during the pushback.
Korean Air: “No one was injured and the airline is cooperating with all relevant authorities.” said in a statement.
According to Kyodo News, the Korean Air flight was bound for Seoul with 289 passengers and crew on board. The agency reported An Airbus A330 suffered damage to its left wing, and a Cathay Airways Boeing 777-300 sustained damage to its right tail.
NHK reported that the vehicle towing the Korean Air Lines skidded on the snowy tarmac and the two planes collided. This is the second collision between planes at a Japanese airport this month. On January 2, a Japan Airlines passenger plane collided with a Japan Coast Guard aircraft while landing in Tokyo and burst into flames. Five crew members of the Coast Guard jet were killed. All 367 passengers and 12 crew members on board the Japan Airlines plane were safely evacuated.
Investigators are still working to determine the cause of the tragedy. According to records of communications between the control tower and Japan Airlines and Japan Coast Guard planes, it appears that the civilian plane was given permission to land, while the Japan Coast Guard plane was instructed to “taxi to a waiting point.” Next to the runway.
But aviation expert and former commercial airline pilot Kathleen Bangs said it was a mistake to compare the two accidents.
The Tokyo episode appeared to involve a runway incursion. No one should be on a runway, on dangerous ground that’s constantly moving at high speeds — whereas Tuesday’s episode was essentially a low-speed wingtip clip. The gate, she said.
“It’s a completely different situation,” she said of the events in Hokkaido, adding that events like Tuesday’s were “not unusual.”