An Air New Zealand flight from Los Angeles to Auckland has been cancelled after the plane was clipped by another plane.
Flight NZ5 on a Boeing 777-300 was parked on the tarmac at LAX Airport on Monday evening (local time), ready for boarding to begin.
It was then that the aircraft's horizontal stabiliser was clipped from behind by another airline's plane, which was being towed across the tarmac.
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The offending airline has not been named.
The Air NZ plane sustained enough damage to cancel the flight, leaving 285 passengers in the lurch.
Anita Hawthorne, Air NZ general manager of customer experience, says the airline is doing everything it can to get the customers to Auckland.
Some have been transferred to another of the airline's Auckland-bound flights, while others have been re-routed via other Air NZ ports in the US or booked on other airlines.
"Many customers will, however, unfortunately need to overnight in Los Angeles and we are providing accommodation where necessary," says Ms Hawthorne.
Engineers from Air NZ are currently on their way to LAX. While a replacement part has been found, it will need to be transported to LA to be fitted to the aircraft.
The repair is likely to take several days.
Newshub.
