Harrowing moment United flight hits light pole and truck while landing at Newark Airport

By CLAUDIA AORAHA, DEPUTY HEAD OF NEWS Published: 18:47, 5 May 2026 | Updated: 18:59, 5 May 2026 Shocking new video has showed the moment a United Airlines aircraft ​struck a light pole and a trailer during its ‌final approach to Newark Liberty International Airport. The underside and tire of United Airlines Flight 169 struck a light pole and ​tractor-trailer on the New Jersey Turnpike around 2pm on Sunday, according ​to a New Jersey State Police spokesperson.  The Federal Aviation ⁠Administration said the Boeing 767-400 landed safely and was arriving from ​Venice, Italy.  There were 221 passengers and 10 crew members onboard the flight. New video from the ordeal showed the passenger plane coming within feet of total disaster as it clipped the objects during its final descent.  Cars and other traffic could be seen traveling at high speeds on the highway below the United plane as it got too close to the ground.  The nail biting clip showed that the landing occurred during a relatively clear weather day, with good visibility.   'Our maintenance team is evaluating damage to the aircraft,' said ​a United spokesperson. 'We will conduct a rigorous flight safety investigation into the incident and our crew has been removed from service as part of the process.' The Port ​Authority of New York and New Jersey said no injuries ​were reported on the plane while minor damage to the aircraft was observed.  New video has showed the moment the United flight hit a light pole and a truck while landing at Newark Airport on Sunday Airport ‌staff ⁠inspected the runway for debris and normal operations were quickly resumed, according to a spokesperson. The tractor-trailer driver was taken to the hospital with minor injuries and has since been released, the Port Authority added. After being hit by the plane, ⁠the pole also struck a Jeep traveling on the parkway. The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board have ​launched an investigation into the incident. NTSB said it has directed United Airlines to secure and provide both the ⁠cockpit ​voice recorder and flight data recorder to ​support the investigation. American airlines have experienced a harrowing number of close calls and near-misses in recent years.  In April, a UPS cargo plane had to abort its landing in Louisville when a small plane crossed the runway just as it approached. The air traffic controller yelled 'Skylab 25, stop!' at the small plane before quickly ordering the UPS plane to pull up and perform a maneuver called a go-around to avert another tragedy at Louisville International Airport, a major hub for UPS.  The Boeing 767, identified as UPS flight 1303, was arriving from Atlanta when it was ordered to cancel its landing.  And earlier this year, an American Airlines pilot was forced to 'slam on the brakes' after a truck came within feet of colliding with him on the taxiway at a North Carolina airport.  The unidentified pilot was maneuvering his plane toward the runway at Charlotte Douglas International Airport when he suddenly had to stop the aircraft.  Two vehicles drove past the plane, seemingly unaware that Flight 1197 had its taxi lights on.  'They just went right in front of us,' the male pilot told the air traffic controller, according to CBS News. 'We nearly hit them, I had to slam on the brakes.'  He informed the air traffic controller they had already begun moving before the car passed by.  Some other aviation tragedies have resulted in death. In March this year, an Air Canada Express plane collided with a Port Authority fire truck on a runway at LaGuardia Airport in New York - killing the pilot and co-pilot. The airport was shut down and dozens of passengers were injured. Last January, a catastrophic mid-air collision occurred in DC above the Potomac River between an American Airlines flight and a Black Hawk helicopter. The two crafts collided when the plane was   This is a breaking news story.  No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.