SHANGHAI, May 3 – After several videos showing a passenger plane striking a jet bridge or PBB, Passenger Boarding Bridge, on the Chinese social media platforms on Saturday, China Eastern Airlines issued a statement expressing its apologies over the incident on its Sina Weibo account.
The company stated that on Saturday, after a flight from Chengdu [in Southwest China’s Sichuan Province] to Shanghai landed and was slowly taxiing toward the parking bay, a mechanical failure occurred. The crew immediately followed procedures, and the aircraft eventually made “partial contact” with the jet bridge. All passengers onboard were safe and disembarked in an orderly manner.
Several netizens posted on social media platforms that after the China Eastern Airlines flight landed at Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, its wing struck the jet bridge, causing part of the bridge to be damaged.
“Very scared, I can’t get off the plane now,” one netizen wrote on Sina Weibo around 12:19 pm.
According to a passenger surnamed Liu, as the plane landed and was moving into the parking position, the nose of the aircraft slightly overshot the jet bridge. He then heard a collision inside the cabin, only to realize something went wrong when the plane’s engine reversed its thrust, Jimu News, a new media affiliated with Hubei Daily reported on Saturday.
Per cabin display screen filmed by Liu, the left side of the aircraft had struck the jet bridge. “There were two impacts. After a delay of more than half an hour, passengers disembarked from the other side of the aircraft and each received 300 yuan ($43.94) in compensation from the airline,” Liu was quoted.
The airline said the specific cause of the incident is under investigation. “We deeply apologize for any inconvenience this incident has caused to passengers’ travel,” the airline added.
