Landing gear support broke as Delta regional jet landed and flipped at Toronto airport, preliminary report says
A landing gear support broke on a Delta regional jet that flipped during landing at Toronto's airport in February, according to a preliminary report from Canada's Transportation Safety Board.
Preliminary findings show the landing gear support broke, the gear retracted, and the right wing broke releasing jet fuel, which led to a fire and explosion.
All 80 passengers and crew survived the crash, with 21 people sustaining injuries.
The report noted a rapid descent alarm just before the plane hit the runway, titled 7.5 degrees to the right.
An official determination on probable cause could take up to 600 days. A landing gear support broke as a Delta Air Lines regional jet was landing before it flipped upside down, leaving passengers 'hanging like bats' at Toronto Pearson International in February, according to a preliminary report from Canada's Transportation Safety Board.
On February 17, the CRJ-900, operated by Endeavor Airlines as Delta Connection Flight 4819 from Minneapolis to Toronto, landed in a fiery crash that ripped off a wing and rolled the plane upside down.
All 80 passengers and crew made it out alive. Twenty-one were injured, including two seriously.
On touchdown, investigators determined the side-stay attached to the aircraft's right main landing gear fractured, the gear retracted, and the right wing broke between the landing gear and fuselage, which is the central part of the plane.
When the wing detached, 6,000 pounds of jet fuel onboard sprayed out leading to a fire and explosion.
The cockpit door was jammed shut, so the pilots had to climb out of an emergency hatch located on the ceiling of the cockpit, the report says.
Thursday's preliminary report does not identify what caused the crash or the broken landing gear. An official determination on probable cause could take up to 600 days.
'Accidents and incidents rarely stem from a single cause,' said Yoan Marier, chair of the Transportation Safety Board of Canada in a statement. 'They're often the result of multiple, complex interconnected factors, many extending beyond the aircraft and its operation to wider systemic issues.'
Less than three seconds before touchdown, investigators noted, the plane warned pilots with an audible alarm that they were descending quickly and the plane banked to the right. It was still descending rapidly when it hit the runway, titled 7.5 degrees to the right.
Investigators have examined components of the flight controls on the crashed plane, but didn't note any obvious pre-existing malfunctions, the report says.
Investigators probing the crash replicated several approaches and landings in a CRJ-900 simulator, according to the report.
Going forward, the safety board will examine the metal making up the wing, certification of the landing gear and wing, landing techniques and pilot training, the evacuation, as well as flight attendant training and coordination in emergencies.
'For everyone at Endeavor Air and Delta, nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and our people,' Delta Air Lines said in a statement. 'That's why we remain fully engaged as participants in the investigation led by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada. Out of respect for the integrity of this work that will continue through their final report, Endeavor Air and Delta will refrain from comment.'
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- CBS News
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A Delta flight attendant aboard the plane that flipped upside down on a Toronto runway in February is going after the airline for a staggering $75 million, accusing it of 'recklessness' and 'gross negligence.' Delta 'cut corners on safety by rushing pilots through training programs and knowingly putting passengers at risk with inexperienced flight crew,' alleged Detroit's Vanessa Miles in a federal lawsuit filed Monday in the Eastern District of Michigan. As many as 21 passengers on a flight from Minneapolis were injured when the aircraft went belly up on the tarmac at the Toronto Pearson International Airport on Feb. 17. 3 The plane, travelling from Minneapolis, flipped upside down on the tarmac at Toronto Pearson International Airport. via REUTERS Miles said was hanging upside down unconscious in the inverted plane. By the time she came around, she was soaked in jet fuel and surrounded by smoke. She unbuckled her seatbelt and fell to the ceiling of the inverted aircraft, the lawsuit states. When she exited the aircraft, she alleges she fell more than six feet to the ground as the emergency slides had not deployed. Two minutes later, the plane burst into flames. By then, all 80 people on board had managed to make it off the aircraft. 3 Miles, who's based in Detroit, is suing for $75 million. Mike Morse Law Firm Miles suffered a traumatic brain injury and fractured shoulder. The plane descended too quickly, causing the landing gear to collapse when it touched down, investigators from Canada's Transportation Safety Board revealed in March. The suit alleges Delta, and subsidiary Endeavor Air, also failed to properly train flight crew on emergency evacuation procedures, adding to the chaos. 3 All 80 passengers managed to make it out the plane. Peter Koukov via REUTERS A Delta spokesperson said the airline declined to comment on pending litigation and continued to fully support the ongoing investigation by Canadian federal authorities.
