Two Delta jets collide while taxiing at New York’s LaGuardia: Media report

NEW YORK – Two Delta Air Lines regional jets collided at low speed while taxiing at New York’s LaGuardia Airport on the night of Oct 1, according to an ABC affiliate.

Video footage posted on social media platform X that appeared to be taken from inside a neighbouring plane showed flashing emergency vehicle lights on the tarmac and damage to a jet’s wing. The right wing of one plane collided with the nose of a smaller plane, reports said, citing air traffic control audio.

ABC News spoke to a passenger on one of the planes who said that the plane had made a hard landing from Charlotte, North Carolina, and then took a quick turn off the runway with the pilot slamming on the brakes. The collision happened at that point and there were no reported injuries, ABC said.

Representatives for Delta did not respond to a request for comment outside of normal US working hours.

The collision is the latest in a string of incidents at LaGuardia in recent months that have raised safety concerns. In March, a Delta jet’s wing struck the runway during a landing attempt, prompting a go‑around and a Federal Aviation Administration investigation.

Federal investigators are also probing a May runway close call in which a Republic Airways jet aborted take-off to avoid collision with another aircraft on the same runway.

The incident comes just hours after a letter signed by more than 50 industry and labour groups, including the International Air Transport Association, warned that a US government shutdown would threaten aviation safety.

“The air traffic controller and technician staffing shortage continues to be a critical problem, and a shutdown would make this problem worse by delaying an already-lengthy hiring and training process,” the letter said. BLOOMBERG