An American Airlines plane at Los Angeles Airport.
"Everyone is fine" after two commercial planes made contact at a busy Washington, D.C. airport on Thursday afternoon, one of the congressional members on board one of the planes bound for New York told NBC News.
Two American Airlines jets were on the taxiway around 12:45 p.m. when the wingtip of a Charleston-bound flight struck the Embraer E175 headed for JFK International Airport in New York, the FAA confirmed.
By a count from NBC News, at least five congressional members from the NYC metro area were on board the flight: Rep. Nick LaLota (R-NY), Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY), Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), andRep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY).
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WATCH HERERep. LaLota posted about the incident first on X, and shared a photo taken through the window from inside the plan.
"Serving in Congress has come with some once in a lifetime experiences… like just now while stationary on the runway at DCA, another plane just bumped into our wing," LaLota said. "Heading back to the gate, but thankfully everyone is ok!"
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SIGN UP Serving in Congress has come with some once in a lifetime experiences… like just now while stationary on the runway at DCA, another plane just bumped into our wing. Heading back to the gate, but thankfully everyone is ok! (And @RepGraceMeng is handing out grapes!) pic.twitter.com/bOo1JNXZDh
— Congressman Nick LaLota (@RepLaLota) April 10, 2025
Rep. Meng, he added, was passing around grapes. She confirmed the snacking sharing in her own social post, but joked that they may need more.
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The New York Democrat then followed up with a more serious tone about airline safety.
"I'm grateful no one was hurt today, but this incident underscores this urgent need restore all FAA jobs that keep our runways safe," she wrote.
LaLota told NBC News that the plane was headed back to the gate after being held on the tarmac for about 30 minutes. According to the Republican, the planes only "swapped paint" and there were no further injuries or serious damage to either aircraft.
"Safety is our top priority, and we apologize to our customers for their experience," a statement from American Airlines read.
The airline confirmed minor damage to each aircraft and said passengers were being re-boarded onto replacement flights to reach their final destinations. There were 76 customers aboard the Charleston flight and 67 on the flight to New York.
