Planes collide at Miami runway crossing a day after national grounding

MIAMI — Two planes collided Saturday night on the tarmac at Miami International Airport, just a day after a nationwide flight grounding caused widespread cancellations and travel chaos.

"The wingtip of a Copa Airlines Boeing 737 struck the nose of a UPS Boeing 767 while the airplanes were taxiing," the Federal Aviation Administration said.

Two people were injured in the collision, which happened around 9:15 p.m., Greg Chin, the airport's communications director, told CNN.

"We were taxiing after landing at a normal speed when, all of a sudden, I heard the chatter around me getting louder, followed by a collective scream and then the impact of another aircraft hitting ours," Copa passenger Cesar Ferreira told CNN.

"Inside the cabin, we felt the plane jerk abruptly sideways. At first, some passengers started freaking out, but the Copa crew reacted quickly, getting everyone to remain seated," Ferreira said.

Air traffic controllers had told the UPS crew to give way to the Copa flight, the FAA, said. The agency is investigating the collision.

UPS said it is "committed to working with authorities to determine what happened" and noted its crew was safe.

Copa Airlines said in a statement it "regrets the disruption this incident may cause our passengers. The safety of our passengers and crew is our top priority, and we will cooperate with authorities as they investigate."

The incident comes as airports across the country are working to resume normal flight operations following the FAA ground stop Friday that left some passengers sleeping on airport terminal floors waiting for their flights to be rebooked.

"Somebody hit us," the pilot of the Copa Airlines flight said in air traffic control audio, as the controller asked the crew of the UPS plane if they had made contact.

"Yeah, we went too far, and then he, he clipped us with the wing," the UPS pilot replied in the audio.

"It seems that we are missing the left wingtip," the Copa pilot said later.

Ferreira said after about 10 minutes the captain announced there was no imminent danger and a tug would be brought in to move the plane.

All 166 passengers and six crew members have since disembarked and the plane was returned to the terminal, the airline said in its statement.

A photo of the UPS plane shows its nose crumpled, with a gaping hole in the panels.

The Copa Airlines flight had just landed in Miami from Panama City, Panama, and an UPS flight was gearing up to takeoff for Bogotá, Colombia, around the time of the incident.

The injuries to the two people were minor and both were treated at the scene by fire and rescue teams, Chin said.