A Delta Air Lines plane clipped an Air Canada jet on a taxiway at Los Angeles International Airport Tuesday morning, with no injuries reported as federal investigators open a probe into the ground collision.
Delta Flight 7 was taxiing for departure around 10:30 a.m. PT on Oct. 6 when its left wingtip struck the horizontal stabilizer of Air Canada Flight 785 at LAX. The Air Canada plane was being towed and had stopped short of its gate.
USA TODAY detailed the incident through FAA Public Affairs Specialist Donnell Evans, who confirmed the wingtip contact occurred on a taxiway rather than an active runway. FlightAware data showed the Delta jet bound for Japan and the Air Canada flight arriving from Toronto.
LAX officials stressed the location and the immediate outcome for passengers and operations.
"We are aware of an incident involving a Delta Air Lines aircraft and an Air Canada aircraft on a taxiway at LAX, not a runway,"
the airport said, adding that no injuries were reported and flights continued to operate normally even as the FAA and NTSB were notified.
Delta issued a direct apology focused on travelers caught in the aftermath.
"Nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and people, and we apologize to our customers for the experience and delay in their travels,"
the airline stated. Air Canada pulled its aircraft from service for inspection and repairs.
A passenger witness described the scene from another plane in real time. The New York Post carried the account from traveler Jayson Lowe.
"I was looking out the window as we were taxiing to our arrival gate and a Delta A350 managed to hit a parked Air Canada plane. A parked plane. I cannot stress this enough,"
Lowe wrote. The same report noted 26 flights from LAX delayed and two cancelled as of 1 p.m. that Tuesday. The FAA restated that the Air Canada flight was being towed when it stopped short of its gate.
Ground collisions like this one expose how quickly routine taxi movements can go wrong at a major hub. Travelers already dealing with crowded terminals have little patience for avoidable scrapes between wide-body jets.
Similar disruptions have hit other airports in recent months, including a suspicious item that forced an evacuation at Miami International and left passengers stranded during peak hours.
Federal investigators now hold the file. The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board will determine how a departing Delta jet and a towed Air Canada plane ended up in contact on the same taxiway. No preliminary cause has been released.
Busy airports run on tight margins. When one plane clips another while simply moving toward a gate or runway, the system shows its soft spots. Staffing pressures and operational strain have already produced large-scale trouble elsewhere, such as the Denver ground stops that delayed 740 flights in a single day.
Delta’s aircraft continued its schedule after the contact. Air Canada’s jet faces repairs before returning to service. Passengers on both flights faced the ordinary misery of delays without the far worse outcome of injuries.
Aviation mishaps do not always involve dramatic midair drama. An unexpected inflatable slide deployment on a high-profile aircraft at Joint Base Andrews recently showed how even routine equipment can halt movements and scramble schedules.
LAX remains one of the nation’s busiest gateways. A wingtip strike on a taxiway, even without casualties, still demands clear answers on communication between crews, tow teams, and ground control.
Safety protocols exist for exactly these moments. When they fall short, ordinary flyers pay first in lost time and frayed plans.
Accountable investigations and tighter ground procedures are the minimum travelers should expect every time two airliners share the same pavement.