A Delta Air Lines flight from Minneapolis crashed and flipped during landing at Toronto Pearson International Airport. Remarkably, all passengers and crew survived the terrifying ordeal, although 18 were injured, with three in serious condition. Eyewitnesses recount the chaos and fear as they navigated the wreckage.
Delta Flight Crash at Toronto Airport: Passengers' Terrifying Ordeal and Survival
Delta Flight Crash at Toronto Airport: Passengers' Terrifying Ordeal and Survival
Eyewitness accounts provide chilling details of a Delta Air Lines flight's crash landing at Toronto Pearson International Airport, where all 80 aboard survived despite serious injuries.
Witnesses on board a Delta Air Lines flight experienced a terrifying ordeal when their plane crashed and flipped upon landing at Toronto Pearson International Airport. John Nelson, one of the passengers, described the moment they realized something had gone wrong, stating, "Our plane crashed. It's upside down."
The flight, which originated from Minneapolis, carried a total of 80 individuals — 76 passengers and four crew members. According to the airport's chief executive, all on board survived the incident, although reports indicate that 18 passengers sustained injuries. Among them, local paramedics mentioned that three individuals—a child, a man in his 60s, and a woman in her 40s—suffered serious injuries, though no critical conditions were reported.
In the aftermath of the crash, Mr. Nelson shared a video on Facebook, expressing relief as he noted, "Most people appear to be okay. We're all getting off." He recounted the chaotic moments just before the accident, explaining that there was no sign of trouble prior to landing. "We skidded on our side, then flipped over on our back," he recalled, with a "big fire ball out the left side of the plane."
Passenger Peter Koukov described the harrowing experience of being upside down in his seat: "We were upside down hanging like bats." Despite the panic, many were able to exit the plane on their own, with some needing assistance to free themselves from their precarious positions.
Video footage from the scene showed passengers scrambling to escape the overturned plane as emergency crews doused it with foam. Among observers at the airport, Diane Perry expressed irony at learning about the crash while in line to check her luggage, saying, "It was kind of ironic that we were in the airport and didn't know that there was a crash outside."
The exact cause of the crash remains under investigation, prompting the closure of two runways for several days, resulting in delays for other travelers. Nelson reflected on his experience, voicing a mixture of shock and gratitude: "It's amazing that we're still here."
