Part of an airline catering truck was left embedded in the side of an Airbus A321 single-aisle jet operated by German carrier Lufthansa on Saturday morning shortly after it had landed at Frankfurt Airport.
Thankfully, passengers had already disembarked the 12-year-old airplane and there were no crew members onboard the jet, according to AEROtelegraph, when the catering truck approached the aft galley door to recater the plane for its next plane.
It appears that the driver of the truck got a little too close for comfort and the protective handrails that form part of the platform that catering carts are rolled across from the truck in the galley punctured the side of the plane’s fuselage.
No one was injured in the mishap but the handrails had to be left embedded in the side of the plane even after the catering truck had been removed.
A spokesperson for Lufthansa was quoted as attributing blame for the accident to “driver carelessness”.
While there will likely be an investigation, this isn’t the first time in recent months that ground equipment has been driven into multi-million-dollar aircraft at Frankfurt Airport.
Last September, a brand new Airbus A330neo operated by German leisure carrier Condor was damaged after a cargo loader punctured the side of the fuselage. The aircraft has been out of service ever since and probably won’t be ready to return to the skies until April.
In response to an enquiry from AEROtelegraph, Frankfurt Airport said it was desperately trying to eliminate these embarrassing, and potentially dangerous incidents. As well as additional driver training and an awareness campaign, the airport is also investing in upgraded ground handling equipment.
