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Newark Airport plane crash: Chilling video shows moment a United Airlines plane strikes bakery truck during final approach | Watch

Newark Airport plane crash: Chilling video shows moment a United Airlines plane strikes bakery truck during final approach | Watch

United Airlines plane strikes truck near Newark airport Photograph: (X)

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Newark Airport plane crash: A United Airlines flight from Venice to Newark came terrifyingly close to catastrophe when its landing gear reportedly struck a lamppost and a truck during final approach, turning an ordinary landing into a near-disaster now under federal investigation.

A United Airlines Boeing 767 narrowly avoided disaster on Sunday (May 3) when its landing gear struck a lamppost and the top of a tractor-trailer truck while on final approach to Newark Liberty International Airport. The incident left one driver hospitalised with minor injuries and has prompted immediate investigations by both the airline and the FAA.

What happened at Newark airport?

Flight 169, carrying 221 passengers and 10 crew members, had arrived from Venice, Italy, when the incident occurred at approximately 2 PM local time. According to the New Jersey State Police, as the aircraft approached the runway, "a landing tyre and the underside of the plane collided with a pole and a tractor-trailer." The pole then struck a passing Jeep on the highway below.

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The truck involved belonged to H&S Bakery. The bakery's Senior Vice President, Chuck Paterakis, said the wheel of the aircraft "crashed into the driver's window," though the truck itself was largely unscathed. The driver sustained minor cuts and was taken to the hospital before being released.

Paterakis noted that the situation could have ended very differently. "It could have been the opposite of what happened," he told ABC, "and a little help from God went a long way tonight for everybody on the plane, and including the driver."

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Dash cam footage from the bakery truck, which shows the moment the plane's gear collided with it, is going viral on social media. Watch it here:

Plane lands safely

No injuries were reported among the 231 people on board the aircraft. The FAA confirmed the Boeing 767 landed safely and said it would investigate the incident. United Airlines said it would "conduct a rigorous flight safety investigation" and confirmed the crew had been removed from service pending the review, standard procedure following an aviation safety incident.

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Moohita Kaur Garg

Moohita Kaur Garg is a senior sub-editor at WION with over four years of experience covering the volatile intersections of geopolitics and global security. From reporting on global...Read More