American Airlines A321 Sustains Significant Damage at Charlotte

CHARLOTTE- At one of American Airlines (AA) primary hubs, Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT), an incident involving a tug resulted in significant damage to the underside and nose landing gear of an Airbus A321 aircraft.

The affected plane has reportedly been grounded since April 21, 2024, and has not operated since.

Photo: By Anna Zvereva from Tallinn, Estonia – American Airlines, N106NN, Airbus A321-231, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=41995921

American Airlines A321 Damage

According to images circulated on X previously (Twitter), the American Airlines Airbus A321ceo, reportedly bearing the registration N136AN, was reportedly involved in an incident with a tug at CLT.

The images depicted significant damage to the underside of the fuselage and the nose landing gear of the airplane.

Data from Flightradar24 indicated that N136AN has not been in operation since it landed at CLT from Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) on April 21, concluding its third flight of the day. The aircraft touched down at CLT at 14:37 local time (UTC -4).

Records from the flight-tracking website revealed that several other Airbus A321 aircraft had spent multiple days on the ground at CLT, including N174US, N927UW, and N153UW.

However, unlike the A321ceo involved in the incident, these three aircraft are equipped with Airbus’ wingtip fences, while the A321 involved in the incident is fitted with Sharklets.

Photo: American Airlines Airbus A321 -231 Taxiing on the south si… | Flickr | Creator: Bill Abbott

Similar Incidents

In recent years, American Airlines has encountered several incidents involving tugs or pushbacks, including one incident at New York LaGuardia Airport (LGA).

In August 2022, during a pushback from the hangar to the gate, a Boeing 737-800, registered as N949NN, collided with a tug, resulting in the latter becoming trapped underneath the aircraft.

Despite the incident, the aircraft remains active with American Airlines, completing its last flight on April 24. On that day, it operated at least three routes, flying from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) to Liberia Guanacaste International Airport (LIR), Costa Rica, returning to DFW, and then from DFW to El Paso International Airport (ELP). Its schedule includes a return to DFW on April 25.

In another incident, an Airbus A321, registered as N193UW, collided with a bus at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) on February 10, 2023. Like the previous incident, the A321 sustained significant damage to its fuselage and nose structure.

According to data from ch-aviation, the aircraft is currently undergoing repairs at Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT).

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