Five people were injured during the collision of an Air Canada Express plane and a fuel tanker truck at Toronto's Pearson International airport early Friday. The collision occurred around 1:36 a.m. ET as Flight 8615 was taxiing to a gate at Terminal 1 with 50 passengers aboard. The DHC-8-300 was originally headed to Sudbury from Toronto, but turned back to Pearson due to foggy conditions in the northern Ontario city. According to Peel Regional Police Sgt. Bancroft Wright, the tanker truck struck the plane and the driver has been charged with dangerous operation of a vehicle. "The plane was pretty much written off," Wright told CBC Toronto. The plane's two pilots, a flight attendant and two passengers were treated for injuries, according to Wright. The Greater Toronto Airport Authority (GTAA) said in a brief email statement that three people were eventually transported to hospital, but didn't identify them. A large dent can be seen beneath the cockpit of the Air Canada Express plane at Pearson airport following Friday morning's incident. (Submitted by Daniel Demers) Panic inside the plane "The aircraft and vehicle have been removed and the scene has returned to normal operations. There is no operational impact at the airport," the GTAA said. It stopped pretty quickly, but then we started to smell aviation fuel and that's when panic started. - Paul Frontczak, passenger Passenger Paul Frontczak was on his last leg of a long trip back from Sydney, Australia. He said it didn't look as though the fuel truck would hit the plane until the very last moment. "We were approaching the terminal and on the left side, I looked out, and a large vehicle was barrelling — it appeared parallel to us, but suddenly, bang!" he said from the Greater Sudbury Airport. "It hit the front of the aircraft, threw the aircraft in one direction, it spun the opposite way, and it looks like either the front or the rear of it hit the back of the airplane." Frontczak said that the plane felt like it was sliding for a few moments before coming to rest. "It stopped pretty quickly, but then we started to smell aviation fuel and that's when panic started," he said. "Everyone was like, we got to get out — we got to get out like now." Emergency services responded to the airport after the plane and a fuel truck collided around 1:36 a.m. ET Friday. (Jeremy Cohn/CBC) It was at that point that the evacuation began. Passengers were forced to jump from the plane onto the tarmac below. Frontczak said the process was somewhat chaotic. "Let's just say I wasn't overly impressed and I'll just leave it at that," he said. Kylie Wright echoed that discontentment in an interview with CBC Toronto. She said there was little communication with passengers, and described the aftermath of the collision as "somewhat disorganized." Wright, who was also on her way home after a trip to Australia, called the experience "incredibly scary." "There was a lot of fuel smell and there was a lot of fuel on the ground as well." Wright declined to take a complimentary flight back to Sudbury later Friday out of concerns for her safety. Jazz Aviation LP, the company that operates flights for Air Canada, said in an email statement that they understand that "deplanement can be an uncomfortable experience." "Our crews are professionals and trained to deal with such situations, and they ensured that all passengers were deplaned safely," the statement said. Any passengers who have concerns were asked to contact Air Canada's customer relations directly. The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) has deployed a team of investigators to the airport.<doc-sep>Five taken to hospital after plane, fuel truck collide at Toronto Pearson airport The flight was supposed to land in Sudbury, but turned back to Toronto because of fog and was struck as it taxied to the terminal Article content MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — A spokesperson for Jazz Aviation says five people were taken to hospital after a fuel truck hit a plane on the tarmac at Toronto Pearson airport this morning. Debra Williams says of the three crew members and two passengers who were taken to hospital, four have since been released. She said the person who remains in hospital was a passenger on the flight. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Five taken to hospital after plane, fuel truck collide at Toronto Pearson airport Back to video Earlier in the day, a spokeswoman for the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, which operates Pearson, said three people suffered minor injuries in the incident. Beverly MacDonald wrote in an email that an arriving Air Canada Jazz plane collided with a Menzies fuel truck at 1:36 a.m. The aircraft was evacuated and passengers were allowed to leave the airport. MacDonald says the incident had no impact on airport operations.<doc-sep>Open this photo in gallery Menzies Aviation, the company that operates the fuel truck involved in the crash, said it has begun an investigation to determine what happened. Patrick Dell/The Globe and Mail Five people were taken to hospital with minor injuries and a fuel-truck driver was charged after a truck hit a plane on the tarmac at Toronto Pearson airport early Friday morning. Authorities say the Air Canada Jazz flight with 51 people on board had left for Sudbury, Ont., but turned around because of bad weather, and was taxiing back to the gate when it was struck at 1:36 a.m. A spokeswoman for Peel Regional Police said the truck hit the plane three times, and the truck driver is now facing a charge of dangerous driving. Story continues below advertisement A spokeswoman for Jazz Aviation, which operated the flight under an agreement with Air Canada, said three crew members and two passengers were taken to hospital with minor injuries, but have all now since been released. The Transportation Safety Board of Canada said it was deploying a team of investigators to the scene. Menzies Aviation, the company that operates the fuel truck involved in the crash, said it has also begun an investigation to determine what happened. A spokeswoman for the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, which operates Pearson, said the incident had no impact on operations.<doc-sep>Send this page to someone via email MISSISSAUGA, Ont. – Five people were taken to hospital with minor injuries and a fuel truck driver was charged after a truck hit a plane on the tarmac at Toronto Pearson International Airport early Friday morning. Authorities say the Air Canada Jazz flight with 51 people on board had left for Sudbury, Ont., but turned around because of bad weather and was taxiing back to the gate when it was struck at 1:36 a.m. A spokeswoman for Peel Regional Police said the truck hit the plane three times, and the truck driver is now facing a charge of dangerous driving. A spokeswoman for Jazz Aviation, which operated the flight under an agreement with Air Canada, said three crew members and two passengers were taken to hospital with minor injuries, but have all now since been released. Story continues below advertisement Interesting evening at Pearson. pic.twitter.com/ZoRUTQiDaR — Bill Dwyer (@builtbybill) May 10, 2019 The Transportation Safety Board of Canada said it was deploying a team of investigators to the scene. Menzies Aviation, the company that operates the fuel truck involved in the crash, said it has also begun an investigation to determine what happened. A spokeswoman for the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, which operates Pearson, said the incident had no impact on operations.<doc-sep>
A fuel truck driver has been charged with dangerous driving after the vehicle hit a plane at Toronto’s Pearson airport. Five people were taken to hospital with minor injuries after the truck collided with an Air Canada plane on the tarmac at around 1:36 a.m. Friday morning. The aircraft was taxiing to its gate, according to a spokeswoman for the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, which operates Pearson. Peel Regional Police told CP24 the truck driver was charged with one count of dangerous driving. Flight 8615, an Air Canada Express flight operated by Jazz Aviation, was cleared to taxi to the gate after landing when the collision happened, Debra Williams, communications manager for Jazz Aviation said. “The aircraft came to a full stop and the crew deplaned passengers quickly and they were escorted into the terminal building,” she said. “EMS arrived to assess passengers and crew. Three crew and two passengers were transported to hospital for further assessment.” All injured have now been released from hospital. The aircraft was a Dash 8-300 with 50 passengers and three crew members onboard. The flight was en route to Sudbury when it was forced to turn back due to fog. Toronto Pearson International Airport confirmed the incident in a tweet. “At 1:36a.m. an Air Canada Jazz aircraft came into contact with a Menzies fuel truck while taxiing on the apron,” Toronto Pearson tweeted. “Airport emergency services responded. Passengers and crew evacuated safely to T1. The aircraft and vehicle were removed and no operational impact at the airport.” The Transportation Safety Board said Friday it has sent a team of investigators to Pearson to probe the incident. The extent of damage to the aircraft was not immediately clear. ---- With files from The Canadian Press