United flight to Italy canceled after wing fuel spill
A United Airlines flight bound for Italy was canceled after fuel gushed from one of its wings.
The plane was taxiing to the runway at Newark Liberty International Airport when the fuel spill occurred.
Witnesses said the fuel came from the edge of the plane's left wing. It's still unclear what caused the leak, where it originated or how much fuel was spilled.
A United Airlines flight bound for Italy was canceled after fuel gushed from one of its wings. The plane (pictured) was taxiing to the runway at Newark Liberty International Airport when the fuel spill occurred
Witnesses said the fuel came from the edge of the plane's left wing. It's still unclear what caused the leak, where it originated or how much fuel was spilled
Authorities said Flight 170 was scheduled to depart for Venice at 6.55pm Tuesday night.
Passengers aboard the plane were put up in a hotel overnight, and the airline was hoping to book them on a new flight Wednesday.
A passenger on the plane also recorded the fuel spill. Several upset people could be heard in the background talking about the spill and one person asked: 'What could that be?'
Another person can be heard saying: 'That is not normal.'
The fuel spill adds to the latest PR disaster for the beleaguered airline, which recently came under fire after a video, obtained by KPRC, showed a United Airlines customer service representative pushing a 71-year-old man to the ground.
The victim, grandfather and frequent flyer, Ronald Tigner, was knocked unconscious after the he asked the customer representative a question about his boarding pass.
Tigner, is now suing the airline and the employee who shoved him - Alejandro Anastasia - for negligence. He is seeking more than $1 million in damages.
This lawsuit comes just two months after United was forced to issue an apology in April when 69-year-old doctor, David Dao, was injured by Chicago airport security officers who were called to remove him from an overbooked plane.
The confrontation was captured on cellphone video and went viral. United later apologized and reached an undisclosed settlement with Dr Dao.
On June 6, Chinese tennis player, Zhang Shuai, 28, accused United of being 'rude', 'disgusting' and 'arrogant' after an alleged dispute with a staff member.
In the last month, several incidents have been reported on United flights (file image). In May, passengers reported being attacked by a scorpion that caused a flight to evacuate and one passenger received a pay-out after her giant bunny froze to death on a United flight
The fuel spill adds to the latest PR disaster for the airline, run by CEO Oscar Munoz (pictured), who forced to issue an apology to 69-year-old doctor, David Dao, who was injured by Chicago airport security officers called to remove him from an overbooked plane in April
Zhang claimed on social media that a 'rude' female worker from the American carrier snatched her passport and tore her boarding pass in Tampa, Florida, last week.
China's No. 1 tennis player, said the worker was trying to stop her from bringing her racket bag onto the flight, claiming it was too big.
The US airline has apologized to Ms Zhang and said what Ms Zhang described 'does not reflect the positive customer experience we strive to offer'.
In the last month, several incidents have been reported on United flights. In May, passengers reported being attacked by a scorpion that caused a flight to evacuate.
Another passenger received a five-figure compensation pay-out after her giant bunny froze to death on its way to America while traveling with United.
Also in May, United issued an apology to Henry Amador-Batten, a gay father, who was flying with his son to their North Carolina home when he was accused of inappropriately touching his son.