Toronto plane crash survivor describes 'mayhem' after terrified passengers hung upside down on Delta jet

Fox News

18-02-2025

A passenger from the Delta Air Lines plane that crashed in Toronto recalled the harrowing moment the aircraft hit the runway and flipped over, propelling passengers into the air while they hung from their seat belts.
Peter Koukov, who was traveling from Denver to Toronto on Monday, caught the moments after the crash-landing on camera as passengers de-boarded the aircraft. He joined "America's Newsroom" to discuss the the harrowing incident.
"Basically, we hit the ground and kind of just bounced up and turned on our side and were sliding on our side for a while," Koukov told Dana Perino on Tuesday. "Honestly, not as long as I thought we were going to slide for, and then we ended up upside down and we were… hanging by our seat belts upside down for a second."
"We made it off safely," he continued. "Everyone is alive, thankfully."
The CRJ-900 jet, which was bound for Toronto Pearson International Airport, had departed from Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport on Monday.
The Federal Aviation Administration said all 80 people aboard the jet were evacuated, as images also showed the aircraft belly up in the snow at Toronto's airport. Before the crash, high winds and drifting snow reportedly had already prompted flight delays and cancelations at Pearson.
"There was no warning from the pilot," Koukov said. "There was no… physical warning either. I didn't feel like anything was wrong until kind of just like the second the wheels touched the ground… It all kind of went mayhem from there."
Air traffic control audio released after the crash depicts officials describing how the plane was "ups-side-down and burning" on the tarmac.
Delta Air Lines said "18 customers with injuries" had been transported to area hospitals. At least three people suffered critical but not life-threatening injuries, a spokesperson for the paramedic service that was on scene told Fox News Digital.
Two patients were taken by air ambulance to two different trauma centers – Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center and St. Michael's Hospital – in Toronto. A child, about four years old, was transported to The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.
"You're kind of just hanging suspended," Koukov said. "Me and that girl next to me were… able to get out pretty quickly and kind of like climb… sort of fall down to the ground, which was in the ceiling. And then other people kind of needed some help and people were sort of falling. But I don't think anyone… was hurt by getting down from their seat belts."
The cause of the crash remains under investigation. The Transportation Safety Board of Canada is expected to take the lead.
"The hearts of the entire global Delta family are with those affected by today's incident at Toronto-Pearson International Airport," Delta CEO Ed Bastian said in a statement.
"I want to express my thanks to the many Delta and Endeavor team members and the first responders on site. We are working to confirm the details and will share the most current information on news.delta.com as soon as it becomes available. In the meantime, please take care and stay safe."