EasyJet planes taxiing for takeoff clip wings at Manchester Airport

The wings of two planes collided on the runway of the Manchester Airport on Friday while taxiing for takeoff, creating a safety scare and disrupting some flights. The EasyJet aircraft clipped wings during taxiing, the spokesman of Manchester Airport said. Passengers were disembarked from both planes, which had been due to take off for Paris and Gibraltar respectively.

Flight services at the airport were suspended for a safety assessment, which found minor damage to the planes. The services were resumed later. There have been no reports of injuries.

A spokesperson for Manchester Airport said, “We suspended operations briefly while they were assessed to see if they could taxi back to a stand, which they could, so operations resumed after a few minutes.”

EasyJet said an immediate investigation was launched to understand what happened.

Tynisha Chaudhry, who was on the Gibraltar-bound flight with her partner, said the collision felt like a car crash to her.

“We felt the whole plane shudder—it was a massive hit.”

The 21-year-old said “a lot of fire engines” and other safety staff rushed to the scene as passengers waited onboard during inspections.

Some children and their parents among the passengers became “tense” before they were allowed to return to the terminal, she added.

An easyJet spokesperson said, “easyJet can confirm that the wingtips of two aircraft came into contact whilst taxiing to the runway at Manchester Airport this morning.”

“The aircraft returned to stand to disembark customers who have been provided with refreshment vouchers whilst replacement aircraft are arranged to operate the flights.”

“We apologise to customers for the delay to their flights. The safety of our passengers and crew is our highest priority.”

The flights involved were EZY2267 from Manchester to Gibraltar and EZY2117 from Manchester to Paris Charles de Gaulle.