A tweet that surfaced online showed the wing edged into a pole.
Qatar Airways may be struggling with ongoing paint issues with its Airbus A350, but one Boeing 777 is coping with a considerably bigger problem after slicing into a metal post at Chicago O’Hare International Airport.
As a result, four pilots have allegedly been sacked, according to reports.
The Qatar Airways cargo Boeing 777-FDZ (registered A7-BFH) landed from Atlanta (ATL) around 8:45pm and was expected to carry on to Maastricht (MST) a few hours later.
However, after colliding with a metal lamppost on runway 10C, the 777 sustained damage to its right wind leading edge. The extent of the damage is unknown, but it appears that the problem was caused by a pilot.
“Qatar Airways can confirm that a cargo aircraft, QR8141 operating from Atlanta to Chicago, came into contact with a light post while taxiing at Chicago O’Hare and sustained some damage to the wing,” a spokesperson from the national carrier said.
“The incident is currently under investigation and we can confirm that no crew members were injured.”
Qatar Airways-Airbus feud
Last week, Airbus cancelled its entire pending order from Qatar Airways for A350 planes, thereby ending all new airliner business with the Gulf carrier, two industry insiders told Reuters.
This came as a major new development to a dispute that has been overshadowing the country’s ongoing World Cup preparations.
For months, the two aviation titans have waged a highly publicised war over the damaged condition of more than 20 long-haul planes that the carrier claims might endanger passengers but Airbus believes are totally safe.
Qatar Airways, the first airline to fly the intercontinental jet in 2015, is suing Airbus for at least $1.4 billion after Qatar’s regulator grounded nearly half of its A350 fleet due to premature surface damage.
It has refused to accept any further A350s until it obtains a more detailed explanation of the damaged or missing portions of anti-lightning mesh exposed by peeling paint.
Airbus, backed by European authorities, admitted quality issues on the planes but disputed any safety danger from holes in the protective sub-layer, stating that there is adequate backup.
Until recently, the issue has had an effect on Europe’s largest twin-engined aircraft order book, with Airbus and Qatar Airways cancelling several individual jets.
However, Airbus has informed the airline that it would strike the remainder of the A350 agreement off its books, according to individuals who asked not to be identified.
At the end of June, the European plane maker still had 19 orders from Qatar Airways for the biggest model of the aircraft, the 350-passenger A350-1000, valued at least $7 billion at catalogue pricing or closer to $3 billion after customary industry reductions.
