Delta knocks tail off other plane on ground

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Dave Taylor
Unless I’m assigned to the flight… they’d change a WING if necessary… I’m a passengers dream come true. May wait 7 hours, but we’re going.
 
Ground gave a bad clearance, pilots failed to get a wing walker to provide certainty of space to taxi.

CRJ was at the hold short line for the departure runway when it was hit.
 
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Just a WAG here, but I’m guessing that’s not an MEL item.
Ummm, prolly not even a CDL (I can hear the maintenance control guys groaning and the pilot calling to ask for a swap as soon as I saw the pict). Last time I was involved in something like this we had a contract mx guy leave his pickup in D when he got out and the vehicle hit the nosegear and hull. I took about 3 weeks to get a temporary patch approved and ferry it to a mx base. I can't even imagine a tail. Sheet metal shop is going to be busy...
 
Am I the only one that’s a bit surprised by how apparently easily it snapped off? Considering the slow taxi speed, it seems like it didn’t take much to break it off. I realize the A350 has a lot of mass, it’s just hard to fathom.
 
Am I the only one that’s a bit surprised by how apparently easily it snapped off? Considering the slow taxi speed, it seems like it didn’t take much to break it off. I realize the A350 has a lot of mass, it’s just hard to fathom.
A big wing full of fuel, striking the top of the fin of a bizjet, should easily bust the fin spars. Lots of leverage, lots of mass, maybe some speed, against a structure designed to handle high winds, basically.
 
Doing a little measuring in Google Earth, it looks like *if* the CRJ-900 had pulled *all the way* up to the hold-short line *and* the A350 was on centerline, there should have been enough clearance. Barely. But it doesn't look like they were even close to the hold line.
 

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Listened to LIVEATC. Not much audible. You hear both planes call for taxi and then you hear 295 saying they need to stop and "check something out." No comment heard from the Endeavor 5526 saying anything. Shortly there after they start juggling all the departures over to the other runway.
 
Fake news. We all know the pilot of the CRJ wasn't using enough right rudder. The real story will come out.
 
Listened to LIVEATC. Not much audible. You hear both planes call for taxi and then you hear 295 saying they need to stop and "check something out." No comment heard from the Endeavor 5526 saying anything. Shortly there after they start juggling all the departures over to the other runway.
I found it a bit odd that we didn't hear from the CRJ, but they had to be having a major WTF moment. Interesting that it didn't look like the CRJ got spun around much, if at all, but the tail isn't built for any real side loads.
 
00:48 295: Delta 295 Heavy Taxi with Romeo
00:53 GND: Delta 295 Atlanta Ground Runway 8R Golf Short of Foxtrot
00:57 295: Golf Short of Foxtrot, Delta 895 I mean 295
02:15 GND Delta 295 heavy contue to 8r turn left on Forxtrot hold short of ramp 5
02:19 295: Left on Foxtrot Hold short of Ramp 5 Thank you Delta 295
02:54 END: Endeavor 5526 3 North taxi Sierra
02:55 GND: Endeavor 5526 Atlanta Ground Expect Runway 8 Right
03:01 END: Expect 8 Right
04:36 GND: Endeavor 5526 Atlanta Ground Runway 8 Right Taxi via Echo
04:37 END: 8R Echo Endevor 5526
04:50 GND; Delta 296 at Fox 3 follow the RJ joining echo monitor tower 119.1
04:51 295: Alright at Fox 3 follow the RJ Monitor 119.3 Delta 295 Thank you
04:54 GND: Endeavor 5526 this heavy airbus will wait for you, monitor tower 119.1
04:55 END: 119.1 Endeavor 5526
05:27 295: Ground Delta 295
05:28 GND: Delta 295 Heavy go ahead
05:32 295: We're going to need to stop somewhere. If we stop short of Fox 3 to work out a problem is that OK

AND OVER ON THE TOWER (119.1) didn't hear anything untoward until
something unintelligible at 8:15 (probably saying there was a collision near the approach end.
8:17 TWR: I just noticed the tail on the RJ is missing. Endevor 5526 hold your position and do you require any immediate assistance?
8:21: END: Hold our position. Uh, Standby, We won't need any immediate assistance, but we will need a tow though.
OPS 6 are you on frequency.
Yes sir Ops 6
There's Been an incident there at hotel and echo short of 8R the RJ and most likely that heavy
Fire chief the emergency will be located at taxiway hotel and the approach end of 8 RIght.
 
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00:48 295: Delta 295 Heavy Taxi with Romeo
00:53 GND: Delta 295 Atlanta Ground Runway 8R Golf Short of Foxtrot
00:57 295: Golf Short of Foxtrot, Delta 895 I mean 295
02:15 GND Delta 295 heavy contue to 8r turn left on Forxtrot hold short of ramp 5
02:19 295: Left on Foxtrot Hold short of Ramp 5 Thank you Delta 295
02:54 END: Endeavor 5526 3 North taxi Sierra
02:55 GND: Endeavor 5526 Atlanta Ground Expect Runway 8 Right
03:01 END: Expect 8 Right
04:36 GND: Endeavor 5526 Atlanta Ground Runway 8 Right Taxi via Echo
04:37 END: 8R Echo Endevor 5526
04:50 GND; Delta 296 at Fox 3 follow the RJ joining echo monitor tower 119.1
04:51 295: Alright at Fox 3 follow the RJ Monitor 119.3 Delta 295 Thank you
04:54 GND: Endeavor 5526 this heavy airbus will wait for you, monitor tower 119.1
04:55 END: 119.1 Endeavor 5526
05:27 295: Ground Delta 295
05:28 GND: Delta 295 Heavy go ahead
05:32 295: We're going to need to stop somewhere. If we stop short of Fox 3 to work out a problem is that OK

AND OVER ON THE TOWER (119.1) didn't hear anything untoward until
something unintelligible at 8:15 (probably saying there was a collision near the approach end.
8:17 TWR: I just noticed the tail on the RJ is missing. Endevor 5526 hold your position and do you require any immediate assistance?
8:21: END: Hold our position. Uh, Standby, We won't need any immediate assistance, but we will need a tow though.
OPS 6 are you on frequency.
Yes sir Ops 6
There's Been an incident there at hotel and echo short of 8R the RJ and most likely that heavy
Fire chief the emergency will be located at taxiway hotel and the approach end of 8 RIght.

Based on this transcript, I would believe Delta 295 (the Airbus) was going to Runway 8R for departure, why did it taxi past the RJ holding short at the end of 8R? Shouldn't it have followed it onto Taxiway H to the runway?
 
Doing a little measuring in Google Earth, it looks like *if* the CRJ-900 had pulled *all the way* up to the hold-short line *and* the A350 was on centerline, there should have been enough clearance. Barely. But it doesn't look like they were even close to the hold line.
They had to have collided before then. Both planes continued to taxi a bit before they sorted it out.
 
Based on this transcript, I would believe Delta 295 (the Airbus) was going to Runway 8R for departure, why did it taxi past the RJ holding short at the end of 8R? Shouldn't it have followed it onto Taxiway H to the runway?
That was the original plan; i.e., 295 follow RJ for 8R departure. 295 then flagged an unspecified problem (prior to collision), thus the request to stop short of F3 on E. I am assuming that ground did not want 295 blocking that section of E, thus the additional taxi instructions (not shown in post #28 transcript) to continue on E, hold short of V. Again, I’m assuming the plan was for 295 to work out its problem while stopped on the section of E between H and V, and then do a U-turn and come back on F to get back into sequence for 8R.
 
That was the original plan; i.e., 295 follow RJ for 8R departure. 295 then flagged an unspecified problem (prior to collision), thus the request to stop short of F3 on E. I am assuming that ground did not want 295 blocking that section of E, thus the additional taxi instructions (not shown in post #28 transcript) to continue on E, hold short of V. Again, I’m assuming the plan was for 295 to work out its problem while stopped on the section of E between H and V, and then do a U-turn and come back on F to get back into sequence for 8R.

If that's the case, I can see where the chain of events gets moving. The 295 crew likely was a little distracted with whatever issue it is, they just want to get parked somewhere to resolve it. There is video of the event on Twitter now, the taxiway in front of them was wide open. "Let's just park over there and see if we can fix this quick...boom"
 
didn't have time to read details, but saw on news.
the link says it was “breaking news.” Ever notice how they never have “fixing news?”
 
Based on this transcript, I would believe Delta 295 (the Airbus) was going to Runway 8R for departure, why did it taxi past the RJ holding short at the end of 8R? Shouldn't it have followed it onto Taxiway H to the runway?
I think they collided back around F2 and E somewhere. The RJ continued around on H before the tail fell off and the Airbus just pulled forward after Ground told him he couldn't go back to F3.
 
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