SINGAPORE: Hundreds of passengers onboard two planes had a miraculous escape when the wing of an Emirates aircraft came into contact with a Singaporean budget airlines at the busy Changi airport. Flight EK405, which was scheduled to leave from Singapore to Dubai, came into contact with Singaporean budget carrier Scoot airlines while both were taxiing for take-off, damaging its left wing.
Scoot's flight TZ188 was scheduled to leave for Tianjin at 1.30 am in China but was returned to bay after the incident. Both Changi Airport and Scoot confirmed that an on-ground accident happened between Emirates EK405, which was bound for Dubai, and Scoot TZ188.
All 303 passengers and 11 crew members on board the Scoot aircraft are safe but the flight was re-timed to about 6 am on a replacement aircraft while the affected plane underwent repair, a representative with the Scoot airlines said. Emirates airlines later issued an apology for the inconvenience.
"Emirates apologies for any inconvenience caused, however, the safety of our passengers and crew is of utmost importance," said an Emirates spokesperson in a statement by email. Emirates said there were no injuries aboard EK405. However, number of passengers onboard the Airbus A380 aircraft was not specified. "Emirates flight EK405 from Singapore to Dubai on March 30 was slightly damaged during pushback," the spokesperson said.
"Engineering inspections determined that some repairs will be required and as a result all our affected passengers have now been rebooked on alternative flights," he said. The damaged plane is undergoing repairs. "We are working with the relevant authorities to investigate the cause of the incident," Scoot spokesman said. Changi Airport Group (CAG), manager of the airport, has confirmed that the incident took place. CAG is also working with the authorities to investigate the incident, the spokesperson added.