A United Airlines flight, flight 654, was landing at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport when, as per witnessed, it made contact with a kite. This scary incident is just the newest in a string of dangerous and even fatal events that have transpired at or near the Arlington airport.
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A witness at Gravelly Point, Dylan Oakes, a witness, producer, and former flight attendant, talked with WUSA9 and detailed how a kite made contact with the incoming United flight on March 29. He recalled seeing a kite that was a bit "higher than it should be."
"We thought it might just be a perspective thing from where we were standing," Oakes told the outlet. "But, lo and behold, as the plane got a little bit closer, it came into contact with the kite." As per Oakes, the kite immediately fell to the ground.
An audio recording shared by LiveATC.net and reported by WUSA9 reveals the moment in which the plane's pilot talks about the kite with an air traffic controller.
"You were telling me those details about the kite, whether it was over the park? How high was it?" the air traffic controller asked the pilot. The pilot answered, "It was over the park, about 100 feet over the ground. It looked like it was right on the flight deck. Those guys were a little bit low."
While the plane managed to land safely with no one suffering any type of injury, Oakes still felt it was a scary moment. Specifically, he mentioned the tragic collision between an American Airlines passenger plane with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter, which caused the deaths of 67 people.
Scary Incident
Besides the memory of the tragedy, Oakes explained that the incident itself could have been potentially dangerous.
"It could be serious," Oakes said. "Planes shouldn't be coming into contact with anything. This kite could have been ingested into an engine, the engine could have possibly failed. You're in a critical phase of flight on the approach. At this point, over Gravelly Point, you're only 100 to 200 feet above the ground, so that's a really critical phase of flight for the pilots."
An audio recording following the flight's landing issued by an air traffic controller instructed an American Airlines pilot to be cautious of the kites. "Use caution for a kite ... reported around 100 feet ... We've got a report, it appears that it's two of them. One is like a bright yellow one," the air traffic controller said.
According to Oakes, the Washington Metropolitan Airport Authority (WMAA) confiscated the involved kite from a family at the park. The WMAA later confirmed that no charges were filed and that the kite was returned.
United Airlines issued a statement addressing the Saturday, March 29, incident shortly after.
"We are aware of reports that a kite struck UA flight 654 from Houston to Reagan Airport in Washington, D.C.," the airline said. "The aircraft landed safely, customers deplaned normally and upon inspection there was no damage to the aircraft."
