A Truck Collided With A Boeing 787 At London Heathrow Piercing Its Fuselage
A truck has hit a Saudia Boeing 787-9 that was parked in London, the United Kingdom, causing damage to the aircraft’s fuselage near the aft section. The aircraft’s return flight to Saudi Arabia was canceled.
The Saudia widebody was parked at the airport after it had landed after flight SV105 from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to London, the United Kingdom. Pictures shared on social media showed the extent of the damage to the aircraft.
Saudia Boeing 787-9 Incident
Photo: jremes84 | Shutterstock
On May 28, a Saudia 787-9, registered as HZ-ARF, was involved in an on-ground incident at London Heathrow Airport (LHR) after a ground services truck impacted the parked aircraft. Pictures of the incident, which appeared on social media, showed that the widebody’s aft fuselage was deeply penetrated with metal railings mounted on the truck.
Flightradar24 records showed that HZ-ARF landed in London at 14:47 local time (UTC +1) after having departed Jeddah King Abdulaziz International Airport (JED) on flight SV105 at 10:39 local time (UTC +3).
The aircraft’s return departure the same day, flight SV106, was canceled by the airline, the flight tracking website indicated. According to the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), carriers, including third-country operators departing the UK, have to provide sustenance, means of communication, accommodation, and transportation to and from accommodation in the event of a canceled flight.
“The airline must provide you with these items until it is able to fly you to your destination, no matter how long the delay lasts or what has caused it.”
Damaged 787-9
Photo: jremes84 | Shutterstock
Nevertheless, the pictures showed that the truck hit the aft fuselage of the 787-9, deeply penetrating the body of the widebody jet with metal railings mounted at the top of the truck.
Various airport employees, including firefighters, were seen standing around the aircraft, which was scheduled to depart London at 17:45 on flight SV106 from London-Heathrow to Jeddah. The 787-9, still painted in the old Saudia livery, will have to undergo temporary and/or permanent repairs before it can return to service. Saudia could utilize British Airways’ maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) facilities at London-Heathrow. The British carrier’s MRO site said that its Customer Engineering Group (CEG), located near Terminal 3, has access to composite and structural repair workshops and skills.
Recently, Air New Zealand ferried a 777-300ER from Brisbane Airport (BNE) to Auckland Airport (AKL), which had a hole in the front of the aircraft after a jet bridge hit it at the Australian airport. The aircraft flew below 10,000 feet (3,048 meters), in actuality, around or lower than 9,000 ft (2,743 m), to avoid having to pressurize the fuselage.
The aircraft had a 7-centimeter (2.7-inch) hole just below the captain’s window.
One Of Three Flights
Photo: jremes84 | Shutterstock
Data from the aviation analytics company Cirium’s Diio Mi airline planning tool indicated that flight SV106 was one of three departures from London-Heathrow to Jeddah on May 28, with the other two being scheduled by Saudia. Flight SV120 is scheduled to depart at 14:40 and arrive in Saudi Arabia at 22:55, while flight SV118 is scheduled to leave London-Heathrow at 22:10 and arrive in Jeddah at 06:25 the next day.
On May 28, 
British Airways and Virgin Atlantic also have flights from London-Heathrow to Saudi Arabia. However, both British carriers are flying to Riyadh King Khalid International Airport (RUH), with the two airlines scheduling two and one departures on the route, respectively. SAUDIA also flies to Riyadh, scheduling three departures.
Virgin Atlantic began its flights to Riyadh recently, with the inaugural departure taking off on March 30. When it celebrated its first flight to the Saudi Arabian city, the airline said that “the new daily service to King Khalid International Airport will capitalise on business expected from the ambitious Saudi Vision 2030,” noting that Riyadh, the city, was in growth mode with an expanded business district, F1 circuit, theme park, and other complexes.
