The packed United Airlines passenger plane that hit a light pole while landing at Newark International Airport last month was flying just 19 feet above the busy Jersey Turnpike, an initial investigation showed.
The May 3 flight was cruising below the safe landing path for about three-quarters of a mile before reaching the runway and striking the light pole, according to the early National Transportation Safety Board report obtained by CNN.
It was so low that it was initially thought that the plane’s landing gear struck a passing tractor-trailer. However, the report showed that the truck was actually hit by debris from the struck light pole, injuring the driver.
A Jeep on the highway was also struck by debris, while the driver of the tractor-trailer was injured.
The plane – a Boeing 767 coming in from Italy with 200 passengers — was landing on Runway 29, which starts just 400 feet from the edge of the highway.
