Summary
- Two people were injured when an employee bus collided with an American Eagle CRJ200 at Chicago O’Hare International Airport.
- Passengers were taken off both the bus and aircraft as a precaution.
- A replacement aircraft was deployed for the affected flight, allowing passengers to continue their journey.
Two people received minor injuries after an American Eagle Bombardier CRJ200 regional jet was struck by an employee bus at Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD) Friday evening. The flight was operated by Air Wisconsin Airlines, a regional airline contracted by American Airlines.
The injured were reportedly taken to a nearby hospital for evaluation and treatment. The aircraft has been taken out of service for repairs as the collision tore off its nose.
Details of the incident
American Eagle flight 6209 (ZW6209) was bound for Dayton International Airport (DAY) in Ohio when the accident occurred around 19:00 CST. American confirmed the incident in a statement to Simple Flying on Saturday.
“An employee bus made contact with American Eagle flight 6209 operated by Air Wisconsin Airlines while the aircraft was taxiing at Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD). Six team members onboard the bus received further evaluation at a local hospital and there were no reported injuries onboard the aircraft. The aircraft has been taken out of service and customers continued on to Dayton, OH (DAY) last night on a replacement aircraft.”
According to ABC 7 Chicago, ORD-based firefighters and EMTs rushed to the scene, and passengers were taken off both the bus and aircraft as a precaution. Crews then escorted the passengers back inside the terminal. Two people on the bus were reportedly taken to Resurrection Hospital with minor injuries, but it is unclear if the victims were passengers on the bus or aircraft.
“Shook everybody up”
Kevis Mitchell and his wife were onboard the plane and recalled the incident.
“The aircraft just about shifting from left to right, and everyone’s looking around, trying to understand what the heck happened,” Mitchell said to ABC 7 Chicago. “We had a jarring impact on the plane, and everyone was basically going from side to side. Shook everybody up pretty good.”
Photo: Air Wisconsin
Photos on social media show a gash in the front of the 50-seater aircraft from the impact. It appears that the jet was still parked at the gate when it was struck by the bus and was not taxiing, as other reports suggest. According to American, the flight was scheduled to depart from gate G10 at Terminal 3 at 18:45, but as a result of the incident, the flight did not leave ORD until 21:21.
“I’m sure we both I just wanted to get home. You know, I’ve had quite a few flights, and one of my fellow passengers served in the Marine Corps… for quite a few years, and never had a crash, but I get on American Airlines, and I get hit by a bus,” Mitchell explained to ABC 7 Chicago.
Replacement aircraft
According to Flightradar24.com, Air Wisconsin deployed N467AW, another CRJ200, as the replacement aircraft for ZW6209. The aircraft arrived at DAY safely at 23:27. Flight data shows that N457AW was the plane involved in the incident. The regional jet had arrived from Traverse City, Michigan, as AW6290 at around 16:00. It now remains on the ground at ORD as it has likely been inspected and will undergo repairments.
N457AW is a 20-year-old CRJ200 delivered to Air Wisconsin in October 2003.
Sources: ABC 7 Chicago, Flightradar24.com