A Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner and a British Airways Airbus A350-1000 aircraft suffered a ground collision at London Heathrow Airport, the largest and busiest airport in London, UK.
The incident occurred on April 6, 2024, as the Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, registered G-VDIA, was being towed from the gate to another location within Terminal 3 of London Heathrow Airport (LHR). The Dreamliner’s left-hand wing tip hit the right-hand horizontal stabilizer of the parked British Airways Airbus A350-1000, registered as G-XWBC, which was scheduled to perform a passenger flight to Accra Kotoka International Airport (ACC) in Ghana.
Emergency services promptly responded to the scene, and a witness captured footage of the unfolding situation at the airport.
Following the incident, engineering teams from Virgin Atlantic and British Airways conducted maintenance checks on the aircraft involved, revealing minor damages to both planes.
To minimize disruption to its flight schedule, British Airways arranged for another A350-1000, registered as G-XWBB, to operate the scheduled flight to Ghana. However, it departed from London with a delay of 6 hours and 30 minutes. Meanwhile, Virgin Atlantic assured that although G-VDIA was removed from service, its flight schedule for April 6 remained unaffected.
Fortunately, no injuries were reported because of the collision. The Metropolitan Police and Air Accidents Investigation Branch launched a comprehensive investigation into the incident.