Plane loses tail after aircraft collide on taxiway at Atlanta airport

A Delta jet clipped a smaller plane on a taxiway at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Tuesday morning, tearing the tail off the smaller plane, officials said.

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[juslewissr]

Despite never making it off the ground, everyone onboard either aircraft can say they've survived a plane crash and it would technically be true.

[PH-mdxp]

Boeing: “Thank goodness this one has nothing to do with us” 😅

[lisadamele]

This is why you need your seat belt fastened even while on the ground. You never know what can happen…

[richardjustinamericantatem]

Airline pilots are human beings and they make mistakes like everyone else.
But I can tell you as a former airline pilot that hitting another plane or anything while taxiing is almost an unforgivable mistake.

[bavery]

Management:
"Yeah, but can you reach the next destination on time...??"

[YaoEspirito]

"Some day there will be a catastrophic collision..." Do they remember Tenerife?

[GRTrollio]

Delta: OK cool story - takeoff in 5 minutes, we aren’t refunding anyone

[BigOlGoose]

I wonder if the smaller plane’s tail will grow back like when a lizard loses its tail

[tanzanable]

Could the air traffic ground controller have prevented this? How did the two aircraft get cleared to be so close to each other?

[ilttpvvm]

I would personally like to remind everyone that the world’s worst aircraft accident involved the collision of two 747’s on the runway at Los Rodeos Airport in the Canary Islands on 27 March 1977.

[_K_W]

Been in aviation for 20 yrs. Incident pilots will never fly again in the commercial space. Ever!

[georgesheffield]

Not good for advertising . At least they were on the ground and no fires .

[andreann]

Considering it is the busiest airport in the world, it must be very efficient since this doesn't happen more often.
I took a flight ATL to LA recently, I thought about this while taxing and seeing other planes crossing paths with my flight. 😰

[VeraHuden-mjbt]

Thank God all are safe. There have been catastrophic collisions on taxi ways and run ways in the past.

[brandonlee]

🤣🤣🤣🤣 if you can’t drive it you shouldn’t fly

[le_encirclement]

Before anyone asks what plane the smaller one is, it's a CRJ-900. Not related to Boeing.

[kentstephens]

That wasn't just a clip when it tears the tail off. Unless it was a Boeing plane and they left the bolts out of the tail.

[eliezairebeaubrun]

I think the the guy controlling traffic was sleeping

[TedOtis]

Simple corporate greed, just too many planes stuffed onto these runways so the airlines can get richer, quicker.

[tesstikles]

Luckily none of the aircrafts puncture their fuel tanks because that would have been catastrophic.