United Airlines plane snags kite while landing at Reagan National Airport — just months after fatal mid-air crash

A United Airlines flight hit a kite while landing at Washington’s Reagan National Airport on Saturday afternoon — months after a deadly collision at the same airport killed 67 people.

The pilot aboard United Flight 654 from Houston to DCA can be heard over air traffic radio providing details about the kite — which was spotted from the cockpit, WUSA 9 reported.

It’s the latest scary mid-air incident in one of the most crowded flight paths in the country. This time, the threat came from Gravelly Point Park, a popular spot just north of the airport on the Potomac River.

“You were telling me those details about the kite, whether it was over the park? How high was it?,” an air traffic controller says in audio from LiveATC.net.

The United pilot replies: “It was over the park about 100 feet over the ground, it looked like it was right on the flight deck. Those guys were a little bit low …”

Dylan Oakes, a WUSA9 producer and former flight attendant, was at Gravelly Point in Arlington with his partner at around 4 p.m. on Saturday and watched the United flight snag the kite.

“There was a kite that looked a little higher than it should be, we thought it might just be a perspective thing from where we were standing but, lo and behold, as the plane got a little bit closer, it came into contact with the kite,” Oakes told the outlet.

The incident follows a near-miss on Friday when a Delta Air Lines plane that was taking off from the airport came within a few hundred feet of US Air Force Northrop T38 Talon trainer jets that were arriving for a fly-over at Arlington National Cemetery.

In January, an American Airlines flight from Wichita collided with an Army Blackhawk helicopter that was flying too high, killing all aboard both aircraft. It was the deadliest US air disaster since 2001.

There were no injuries from Saturday’s close-call with the kite.

“The kite fell to the ground. The plane landed safely, thankfully everyone’s OK, but it’s just a little scary given the recent history at DCA — our issues with close calls and what happened two months ago,” Oakes said. 

The situation could have become dire if the kite had been sucked into the plane’s engine, Oakes added.

“It could be serious … planes shouldn’t be coming into contact with anything. This kite could have been ingested into an engine, the engine could have possibly failed,” Oakes added. “You’re in a critical phase of flight on the approach.”

Oakes said he also saw Washington Metropolitan Airports Authority officers later confiscate the kite from a family in Gravelly Point. It was returned soon after.

“Airports Authority police officers responded to reports of kite-flying at Gravelly Point today, an activity which is not allowed in that area due to the danger of to low-flying aircraft,” a MWAA spokesperson told WUSA9.

“Officers warned some individuals about flying kites and briefly confiscated a kite. That kite was returned to its owner shortly later and no charges were filed.” 

In a statement, United Airlines said there was no damage to the plane and no injuries were reported in the incident.

“We are aware of reports that a kite struck UA flight 654 from Houston to Reagan Airport in Washington, D.C.,” the airline said. “The aircraft landed safely, customers deplaned normally and upon inspection there was no damage to the aircraft.”