A chilling dashcam video has revealed the exact moments when a United Airlines flight landing at Newark Liberty International Airport struck a streetlight and a tractor-trailer on a nearby highway in a bizarre accident on Sunday.
Details of the Incident
A Boeing 767 was flying from Venice, Italy, to Newark with more than 200 passengers and 10 crew members. The truck driver was hurt but sustained non-life-threatening injuries. The plane landed normally with no one hurt.
According to CNN, a preliminary investigation blamed the plane’s landing gear tires and the underside of the aircraft for the accident. The plane first collided with a pole and then a tractor-trailer, after which the pole struck a Jeep.
Statements from Officials
“The driver of the tractor-trailer sustained non-life-threatening injuries and was transported to an area hospital,” New Jersey State Police spokesman SFC Charles Marchan said in a statement.
The truck driver, identified as Warren Boardley of Baltimore, was heading north on the turnpike to deliver bread products to a Newark airport depot when the incident occurred, Chuck Paterakis, senior vice president of transportation for Schmidt Bakery and co-owner of H&S Family of Bakeries, told CNN.
Dashcam Footage
Dashcam video from the truck showed that Boardley was singing seconds before the plane's landing gear tires struck the truck. The driver was confused as the sound of the plane's engine grew louder. In the next moment, only shards of glass were flying.
According to recordings of air traffic control communications captured by LiveATC.net, the pilots and air traffic control did not appear to be aware that the plane had struck the light pole upon landing. The 767 was given instructions to taxi to the gate as other aircraft continued to land on the same runway.
Air traffic controllers reported “a hole in the side of the airplane” to an operations vehicle preparing to inspect the runway about half an hour after the landing, according to another recording from LiveATC.net.
United Airlines Response
“The aircraft landed safely, taxied to the gate normally and no passengers or crew were injured,” United said, adding that the plane’s crew has been removed from service as part of the investigation.
