Two Delta planes collided with each other near the runway of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Tuesday, causing loud bangs to be heard by those on board, including a WPTV News crew.
Delta said the incident occurred just after 10 a.m. when the wing of a Delta Airbus A350 was taxiing out as it prepared to leave for Tokyo. However, the plane made contact with the tail of a Delta Endeavor Air CRJ-900 that was getting ready to leave for Lafayette, Louisiana, on an adjacent taxiway.
Delta said the collision resulted in damage to the tail of the regional jet and the wing of the A350. No injuries were reported.
"Following an incident at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport earlier today, Delta worked with each customer from flights DL295 to Tokyo-Haneda and DL5526 to Lafayette, Louisiana, to provide accommodation on alternate aircraft scheduled to depart Tuesday afternoon. We apologize to our customers for the experience," Delta said in a statement.
There were 221 passengers on the flight to Tokyo and 56 on the flight to Louisiana.
Delta said they are cooperating with the NTSB and other authorities on this incident. The airline said their teams were preparing to move both aircraft to maintenance hangars.
Operations were continuing as normal at the Atlanta airport, according to Delta.
WATCH BELOW: WPTV reporter Kate Hussey, others WPTV employees on Delta plane during collision at Atlanta airport
WPTV News crew on plane during incident
WPTV reporter Kate Hussey, along with a WPTV producer and photographer, were on the plane bound for Louisiana at the time of the incident.
Scripps News Tampa reporter Jason Adams was also aboard when they heard the jarring sound of metal scraping against the plane. There were no reports of injuries.
"We were taxiing out, all was normal," Adams said. "The flight attendants did their safety measures, their safety precautions, they sat down, and I put my AirPods on, I was listening to music, and then all of a sudden, like out of nowhere, just bang!"
Hussey said she and other passengers sat on the plane for about 45 minutes before they were told to exit the aircraft and were then bussed back to the terminal.
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Adams said the sound of scrapping lasted for 10-15 seconds.
"We're all just sitting there, and then one of the flight attendants goes from the front of the plane to the back of the plane, like grabbing your chest, breathing heavy, like she was terrified too," Adams said. "People were screaming, nobody knew what was going on, and then we all just sat there and we were like, we're OK, everybody's OK."
Adams said the plane he was on had the tail completely removed from the plane. He said the other plane had less damage.
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He added that emergency crews checked on passengers as they came down the stairs.
"I think everybody was just grateful that it could stay on just as it was. It didn't hit the middle of the plane," Adams said.
'A LITTLE SCREAMING WENT ON, PANIC'
Andre Broussard and his family were on the flight, trying to get home to Lafayette to prepare their home ahead of current Tropical Storm Francine when the Louisiana-bound family was jolted from behind.
"A little screaming went on, panic, you know?" Broussard said.
"All of the sudden, we're grabbing everybody and it's about instinct; something's happening, and we don't know what it is," added Denise Champagne.
Champagne was sitting in the back of the plane, near where the Tokyo-bound flight hit the aircraft's tail. She felt every bit of the impact.
"It's not fun when you get hit from behind," Champagne. "You start to get a little emotional and shaky realizing how bad it was."
Passenger Tony Gensic was on his way to Lafayette to help with FEMA response as Hurricane Francine nears. He said he saw the Tokyo-bound aircraft approaching.
"I was looking out the window when I saw this plane coming, and I thought, 'Man, this plane is really close to us,'" Gensic said. "I think it could have been a lot worse."
Hussey said she and other passengers sat on the plane for about an hour as first responders assessed the damage. Passengers were then deplaned and bussed back to the terminal.
"We're just hoping the delay didn't put us in a more intense part of the storm," Gensic said.
As of Tuesday evening, Delta re-routed all passengers and all who chose to continue their trips to Louisiana made it there safely.
"It was startling for all of us," Hussey said.
