Tagged: airplane

Two Southwest Airlines planes struck each other while leaving adjacent gates at Detroit Metropolitan Airport. Southwest spokesman Chris Mainz says no one was hurt when the planes' winglets collided Saturday morning.

Both jets returned to their gates, and all passengers and crew got off.

Update 3/30/2011, 6:32 a.m.:

A Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman says three people have been killed after a small, single-engine Piper airplane crashed into a Monroe city park, the Associated Press reports. From the AP:

Police and other emergency personnel responded to the Tuesday afternoon crash at Munson Park. A police dispatcher says reports of the crash came in at 4:04 p.m.

Munson Park is at the southeast corner of Monroe Custer Airport, about 35 miles southwest of Detroit and just north of the Ohio state line.

FAA Spokeswoman Elizabeth Isham Cory says her agency is investigating the crash. The investigation will be led by the National Transportation Safety Board.

Tracking service FlightAware.com reports that the plane left an airport in Bedford County, Pa., at 2:26 p.m. and was due in Monroe at 4 p.m.

3/29/2011, 5:12 p.m.:

From the Associated Press:

Police and other emergency personnel are responding to a small plane crash at Munson Park in the city of Monroe.

A police dispatcher says reports of the crash came in at 4:04 p.m. Tuesday.

It was not immediately known if anyone on the plane or on the ground suffered any injuries.

Monroe is about 35 miles southwest of Detroit and just north of the Ohio state line.

This from FOX 2 News in Detroit:

FOX 2 News is learning there has been a small plane crash near Monroe Custer Airport in Munson Park just across North Custer Road from the airport.

Witnesses tell us they could see smoke coming from the area.

We spoke by phone with a man who works nearby. He says he saw the burning plane and heard there were three people on board.

A second caller tells FOX 2 he's hearing there are three victims, as well.

Firefighters and police are on the scene.

UPDATE 10:45 a.m.:

A suspicious package forced the evacuation of part of the Detroit Metro Airport today.

Mike Conway is an airport spokesman. He says baggage handling workers alerted security officials after a box containing electronic equipment and loose wiring entered the building. The box was being moved from one airplane to another.

Conway says the security officials closed 8 gates in the McNamara Terminal while they investigated the box.

 “The area below that is where the nuts and bolts where all the processing of all the luggage, packages and stuff like occur…this package was on a belt…in the bag makeup area for that section of gates.’"

Conway says the box did not originate in Detroit. He says the shipper is being contacted.

9:15 a.m.:

Part of a terminal at Detroit Metropolitan Airport has been evacuated, the Associated Press reports. Authorities say the evacuation occurred after a suspicious box was found at an area for loading cargo and luggage onto planes.  According to the AP:

Airport spokesman Mike Conway says the box was found about 7:15 a.m. Tuesday and passengers were removed from part of Concourse B at the McNamara Terminal out of "an abundance of caution." Conway says planes that were to use gates at the concourse were using other gates at the airport. The concourse at the airport in Romulus primarily is used by regional aircraft.

He says details about why security officials determined the box to be suspicious weren't immediately available.