The driver of a bakery truck, which was clipped by a United Airlines plane while on the New Jersey Turnpike, feared for his life, believing he would be decapitated just moments before the impact, as revealed by his father during a press conference on Tuesday.
On Sunday, Warren Boardly Jr., a driver for Baltimore’s H&S Bakery, was on the New Jersey Turnpike when an unexpected encounter occurred. United Flight 169 descended lower than usual, causing its landing gear to scrape against Boardly’s 18-wheeler.
“He said he saw a flash, which made him instinctively duck and raise his hands,” recounted his father, Warren Boardly Sr., speaking on Tuesday.
The incident was captured on a dashcam installed in Boardly Jr.’s truck, showing the moments leading up to and during the collision. The footage reveals Boardly Jr. hitting his head on the truck’s ceiling upon impact, an event which, according to Boardly Sr. and attorney J. Wyndal Gordon, resulted in an acute head injury.
Surveillance cameras recorded the United Airlines aircraft striking the tractor-trailer as it neared its landing at Newark Liberty International Airport on May 3, 2026, footage obtained by WBFF shows.
“He felt overwhelming fear, convinced he wouldn’t survive or walk away from the incident. He genuinely believed decapitation was imminent,” Boardly Sr. expressed on Tuesday.
Boardly Jr. is still recovering at home from his injuries. “He’s doing the best he can under the circumstances. He has a lot of pain, a lot of emotional distress that’s just not gonna heal overnight,” Gordon told the news conference.
“His mental and emotional status is… you know, it’s coming. We have to get him looked at because that was a traumatic experience. I’ve never known anyone to walk away from something like that. So, you know, he feels the same way. He’s struggling with that part of that,” Boardly Sr. added.
“Today could have been a day where we are mourning his loss,” Boardly Sr. also said.
“Had he been going one mile per hour faster, or one mile per hour slower, it would have more than likely killed him,” Boardly Sr. said, adding that watching the video “shook me to my core.”
Surveillance footage shows the moment a United Airlines plane clipped a tractor trailer during its approach at Newark Liberty International Airport on Sunday, May 3, 2026. (Obtained by WBFF)
Gordon explained that while the Boardlys are open to potential litigation, right now they’re focused on finding out what happened.
“We expect that there’s some negligence there because planes just don’t drop out of the sky and they just don’t ordinarily and routinely hit 18-wheelers traveling along the New Jersey Turnpike, Gordon said.
Surveillance footage shows a United Airlines plane clipping a tractor trailer during its approach at Newark Liberty International Airport on May 3, 2026. (Obtained by WBFF)
“We’re not just going to file a lawsuit without having all the facts or having enough facts that we believe that we can reasonably prove our case. So, in terms of litigation, we’re nowhere near there. We’re in the fact finding process right now just to get enough information to if we needed to file a lawsuit,” Gordon concluded.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration are conducting investigations into the incident.
“The agency has directed United Airlines to secure and provide both the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder to support the investigation. A preliminary report outlining the facts and circumstances of the event is expected within 30 days,” the NTSB previously told FOX Business.
“Upon its final approach into Newark International Airport, United flight 169 came into contact with a light pole,” United also said in a statement to FOX Business. “The aircraft landed safely, taxied to the gate normally and no passengers or crew were injured.”
Fox News Digital contacted the NTSB, FAA, United and J. Wyndal Gordon for additional comment.
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