Saudia jet hits parked Philippine Airlines plane at Manila Airport

The rudder of a parked Philippine Airlines plane was hit by a Saudia plane at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport at around 11:38 pm, on July 7.

No one was injured in the collision, ASS-CBN reports.

Initial investigation shows that the left wingtip of the Boeing 787 of Saudia, carrying 252 passengers, hit the rudder at the vertical stabilizer or tail fin of PAL’s Airbus 320, which was parked at Bay 25. 

PAL’s rudder sustained extensive damage, while there was also damage on Saudia’s wingtip.

PAL confirmed that one of its parked aircraft was struck by another aircraft during ground maneuvering. There were no passengers or crew on board the plane at the time of the incident.

“The aircraft has been withdrawn from service pending a technical assessment,” PAL said in a statement.

The Saudia jet, which was reportedly headed to Jeddah, had to cancel its flight. There were reportedly no passengers in the PAL jet.

The cause of the aircraft collision is still under investigation.

In a separate statement, Saudia confirmed that one of its planes was involved in a minor ground incident at NAIA.

"All passengers and crew were disembarked safely. Saudia is working closely with the relevant authorities and supporting our guests to continue their journeys," Saudia said.

Meanwhile, NAIA operator New NAIA Infra Corp said the country's main gateway "continues to operate normally."

By Vafa Guliyeva