Several staff members were injured after a Lufthansa Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner tipped onto its nose at Frankfurt Airport on Thursday, the German airline said.
The incident occurred at 12:45 p.m. (1045 GMT) just before passengers boarded the plane, which was scheduled to fly to Los Angeles.
Luftahnsa said the aircraft "unexpectedly" retracted while it was parked, causing the nose of the plane to fall several meters to the ground and breaking off the door flaps of the nose gear bay.
Cabin crew and ground staff were on board and several were injured and received medical treatment, the airline said.
Another Lufthansa spokesperson said later on Thursday that the wounded, which included two of its crew members, sustained only light injuries.
They were taken to the hospital to receive treatment.
The flight to Los Angeles was canceled.
"Experts are currently on site and inspecting the aircraft," Lufthansa said.
The plane is expected to be moved as early as Thursday evening to a hangar "where further inspections will take place before the aircraft is repaired," the airline added.
According to the Aerotelegraph website, the damaged jet is only one year old and was delivered to Lufthansa in January.
Boeing said Thursday in an emailed statement that it is "aware of the incident" and "supporting our customer."
Video from the scene appeared to show the front wheels of the wide-body plane sliding forward and the plane's nose falling down several meters, as a ground crew member standing nearby quickly backed away.
The doors to the nose gear bay broke off upon impact.
A 2021 incident at London's Heathrow Airport also involved the nose landing gear of a Boeing 787. According to a report by the U.K.'s Air Accidents Investigation Branch, a 787-8 was undergoing maintenance at a gate when its nose landing gear retracted during testing, causing the aircraft's nose to drop onto the pavement.
Investigators found that a locking pin intended to prevent retraction had been inserted into the wrong position, allowing the gear to fold despite safeguards designed to keep it extended.
