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Yesterday evening, a Saudia widebody aircraft collided with the vertical stabilizer of a stationary Philippine Airlines (PAL) aircraft while taxiing in Manila. The Saudia aircraft was scheduled to return to Jeddah, but due to the incident, the flight was canceled.
Reports indicate that both aircraft suffered structural damage, resulting in both jets being grounded. However, it has also been confirmed that no passengers or crew were onboard the parked PAL aircraft, and no other injuries have been reported either. This indicates that no passengers or crew members were injured on board the Saudia aircraft either.
An On-Ground Collision In Manila
On Tuesday, July 7, a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner jet operated by Saudia collided with a PAL Airbus A320 while taxiing at Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL). Reports from The Manila Times indicate that the Saudia aircraft was operating flight SV871, which was a scheduled return service back to Jeddah. At the time of the incident, the Saudia aircraft was moving, while the PAL A320 was parked, with no passengers or crew onboard.
As per the images circulating online, the port (left) side wing of the 787 clipped the lower part of the A320’s vertical stabilizer. No crew or passengers onboard the Saudia aircraft were reported to be injured either. However, the reports confirm that both aircraft experienced damage and that both operators have grounded the aircraft, which resulted in Saudia’s flight back home being canceled.
Reports indicate that an investigation is being conducted and that Saudia is coordinating closely with the airport and aviation authorities involved. These investigations are common after such incidents, as the findings would provide insight into the root cause and factors that led to this incident. Simple Flying has reached out to Saudia to know more about how the airline assisted its passengers who might have been affected by this cancellation.
Catch what other flight trackers miss
Emergency squawks, holds, NOTAMs — live signals, no signup.
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Catch what other flight trackers miss
Emergency squawks, holds, NOTAMs — live signals, no signup.
Open tracker
Vertical Stabilizers Are Key To Aircraft Stability & Control
It is important to note that the vertical stabilizer on an aircraft functions, as the name suggests, by providing the aircraft with stability in flight. Additionally, due to the location and the considerable surface area, the stabilizers are always exposed to airflow in flight, which makes them aerodynamically critical as well. Therefore, any damage to this part of the airframe can prove detrimental to the aircraft’s stability and control when in flight.
Furthermore, the vertical stabilizer also houses the rudders of the aircraft, which are one of the primary flight controls of the aircraft. The rudders (similar to boats and ships) provide the aircraft with direction control and act about the aircraft’s vertical axis. The rudders are utilized to adjust the heading of the aircraft, but they are also utilized in tandem with the aircraft’s ailerons to ensure stable and smooth turns or rolls.
For background, primary flight controls are important surfaces on an aircraft that can be actuated by the flight crew for safe control and maneuverability of the aircraft. There are three of these control surfaces, and these are ailerons for rolling, elevators for pitch control, and the rudder for directional or yaw control. However, these control surfaces are usually used alongside the aircraft’s secondary flight controls.
What Are The Secondary Flight Controls Then?
Similar to the primary flight controls, these are also surfaces on the aircraft. However, these surfaces do not directly control the aircraft, but rather support the primary flight controls in ensuring stability during in-flight maneuvers. These include control surfaces such as spoilers/air brakes, flaps and slats, and aircraft trim systems.
An example of both primary and secondary controls working together is that of how spoilers are deployed along with the actuation of the elevators when the aircraft is descending, to ensure the aircraft does not overspeed during the maneuver. Furthermore, in this situation, the spoilers also act to help the aircraft lose its altitude at a faster rate (albeit in a controlled manner), ensuring flight safety.
Passengers seated by the windows would have noticed that, before every flight, the pilots always fully actuate all the primary and secondary flight controls when the aircraft is still on the ground. This is done as a pre-flight safety check to ensure that all the flight controls are fully functioning and the associated control surfaces can be fully actuated.
