Flight forced to return to airport after hitting a SIGN during take-off

Milwaukee, Michigan, USA - July 14, 2014: Tail section of American Airlines 737 airplane. This aircraft was produced by the Boeing company.

An American Airlines (AA) flight was forced to return to turn back on Wednesday night (local time) after hitting a sign during take-off.

AA flight 300 was departing New York through John F. Kennedy airport on its way to Los Angeles when the plane had an unexpected encounter with a sign adjacent to the runway, Port Authority spokesperson Steve Coleman told CNN:

The sign “directs pilots as they’re going down the runway,” Coleman said.

It was reported that the plane hit the sign because it was slightly off-centre during its take-off.

The flight took off at 8:40 pm local time but returned to JFK just after 9 pm, AA said in a statement, while the airline also confirmed no injuries were reported. There were 101 passengers and eight crew members on board.

“[American Airlines] is swapping flight 300 to a new aircraft, as our team reviews the incident and inspects the aircraft,” AA said. “We never want to disrupt our customers’ travel plans and we are sorry for the inconvenience.”

Latest News