NTSB Investigating Wing Clipping Incident at JFK Airport

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating a wing tip clipping that occurred between an Airbus A380 (F- HPJD) and a Bombardier CRJ-700 (N641CA) at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York last night.

On April 11, 2011 at 8:25 PM EDT, preliminary reports indicate that the left wing tip of Air France flight 7 struck the left horizontal stabilizer of Comair flight 293 while the Comair airplane was taxiing to its gate. There were 485 passengers and 25 crew onboard the Airbus and 52 passengers and 4 crew onboard the CRJ. No injuries were reported on either aircraft.

The NTSB has requested the fight recorders (cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder) from both aircraft and will review the content of those devices as part of the investigation. Also, the NTSB will review the air traffic control tapes and ground movement radar data (ASDE-X). The damage sustained to both aircraft is still being assessed.

Parties to this investigation include the Federal Aviation Administration, Comair, and the Air Line Pilots Association. Also, accredited representatives from the French Bureau d'Enquetes et d'Analyses (BEA), the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB), and their advisors from Airbus, Air France, and Bombardier Aerospace, are assisting the investigation.

The NTSB will release more information as it becomes available.