Posted on 03/30/2007 5:08:59 PM PDT by Paleo Conservative
(AP) DENVER An empty passenger bridge collapsed over the wing of a United Airlines plane at Denver International Airport on Friday, damaging the aircraft but causing no injuries, the airline said.
The cause of the collapse and the extent of the damage were not immediately known.
United spokeswoman Megan McCarthy said the Boeing 757 had just arrived from Boston and the 184 passengers and crew were still on board.
The bridge extends from the concourse to the plane. The one that collapsed is a new type that extends over the wing so passengers can use both the front and rear exits of the plane.
The collapse occurred in the rear portion of the bridge, McCarthy said. The aircraft will be moved and repaired after the bridge is raised, she said.
The plane had been scheduled to fly to New York's LaGuardia Airport, but that flight was canceled and the passengers were being booked on other flights.
Denver is one of the first airports to use the over-the-wing bridge, a DoubleDocker manufactured by Ottawa-based Dewbridge Airport Systems, according to the company's Web site. It is designed to speed loading and unloading to reduce the time aircraft spend on the ground.
It was installed last year and was financed by United, the Web site said.
Dewbridge Vice President Neil Hutton said the company is investigating.
"We have dispatched a team to Denver. We have no idea yet what caused the collapse."
He said there have been no indications of any safety issues with the bridges and no other collapses.
Five of the bridges are in use in Denver and three in Vancouver, British Columbia, he said.
The fully automated bridges are guided to the aircraft doors by a system using lasers.
"Come to the light"
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