Southwest jets bump wings at Bob Hope Airport

For the second time this year, a Southwest airliner bumped wings with another jet while both were pulling away from the terminal building at Bob Hope Airport in Burbank on Sunday morning.

At about 2:30 p.m., Oakland-bound Flight 815 was departing from the gate when it hit a jet parked at an adjacent gate — Flight 1240, slated to fly to Denver — Ian Gregor of the Federal Aviation Administration told the Los Angeles Times Sunday.

Photos posted to social media sites appear to show one jet’s winglet, the vertical tip on the main wing, touching the smaller wing, known as a horizontal stabilizer, on the second jet’s tail.

There were no injuries reported, according to Dan Landson, a Southwest Airlines spokesman. The two aircraft — both Boeing 737s — were taken out of service for inspection.

“Our employees worked to reaccommodate the 225 customers on other flights,” Landson said via email Monday.

Gregor said the collision occurred on a part of the airfield where air-traffic controllers were not guiding the aircraft.

It follows roughly six months after a similar event, in which two Southwest 737s clipped wings and were taken out of service in early June.

At that time, a Southwest spokeswoman said it is standard procedure for observers on the ground, called “wing-walkers,” to assist pilots while the planes are being pushed back from the gate to avoid such incidents.

She said the airline would investigate and use its findings “to further advance our mission of safety.”

Landson said on Monday that, as with any occurrence, Southwest will “investigate internally and will take any measures necessary to ensure a safe operation.”

In an email Monday, Gregor referred questions about the frequency of such incidents in Burbank to Bob Hope Airport officials.

Airport spokeswoman Lucy Burghdorf declined to comment on the specifics of the incident, calling it “a Southwest matter.” She referred questions to the airline, but she added that in 20 years working at the airfield, she does not remember other occurrences like the two this year.

Landson did not provide further details.

“We don’t have any specific information associated with these incidents,” he said.

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Chad Garland, chad.garland@latimes.com

Twitter: @chadgarland