Delta airlines plane flips over during landing in Toronto, injuring 18

TORONTO,— A Delta Air Lines plane flipped upside down while landing at Toronto Pearson International Airport on Monday, but all 80 people on board survived, with only minor injuries reported, airport officials said.

The aircraft, a Mitsubishi CRJ-900LR, was arriving from Minneapolis with 76 passengers and four crew members when it attempted to land around 2:15 p.m. amid strong winds and blowing snow.

Wind gusts reached up to 40 mph (65 kph) at the time, according to the Meteorological Service of Canada.

Peter Carlson, a passenger in Toronto for a paramedics conference, described the landing as “extremely forceful.”

“Suddenly, everything shifted, and before I knew it, I was upside down, still strapped in,” he said in an interview with CBC News.

Authorities held brief press conferences but did not provide extensive details about the crash. Video footage on social media showed the overturned aircraft with its fuselage intact as emergency crews extinguished a fire and assisted passengers off the plane.

“We’re thankful that everyone survived and that the injuries were not severe,” said Deborah Flint, CEO of the Greater Toronto Airports Authority.

Toronto Pearson Fire Chief Todd Aitken said 18 passengers were transported to hospitals. Earlier, Ornge air ambulance reported taking one child to Toronto’s SickKids hospital and two adults to other medical facilities in the city.

Emergency crews arrived within minutes, and Aitken said the response proceeded as planned. “The runway was dry, and there were no crosswind conditions,” he noted.

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada is leading the investigation, with the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) sending a team to assist. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration also confirmed it would provide updates as the inquiry progresses.

The incident marks the fourth major aviation accident in North America in recent weeks. On Jan. 29, a commercial jetliner and a U.S. Army helicopter collided near Washington, D.C., killing 67 people.

On Jan. 31, a medical transport plane crashed in Philadelphia, leaving seven dead. A separate crash in Alaska on Feb. 6 killed 10 people.

Toronto Pearson’s last major accident occurred on Aug. 2, 2005, when an Air France Airbus A340 skidded off the runway and caught fire during a storm. All 309 passengers and crew survived.

The Delta flight was cleared to land at 2:10 p.m. Audio recordings revealed air traffic controllers warned the pilots about potential turbulence on approach.

Aviation safety expert John Cox, CEO of Safety Operating Systems, said the warning suggested “a bumpy ride” but nothing out of the ordinary.

“Aircraft are built and certified to withstand these conditions, and pilots are trained to manage them,” Cox said.

The aircraft came to a stop at the intersection of Runways 23 and 15L. A medical helicopter returning to assist observed the crash site.

“The aircraft is upside down and burning,” the helicopter pilot told controllers.

Carlson, one of the passengers who managed to exit the plane, described freeing himself from his seat belt and dropping to what had become the cabin’s ceiling.

He smelled fuel and saw aviation fluid streaming down the windows. With his background as a paramedic, he quickly assisted others, including a mother and her young son.

“I didn’t think about the cold or the distance—I just knew we had to get out,” he said.

Investigators are focusing on why the plane overturned and why it was missing its right wing.

“If one wing is missing, the aircraft will naturally roll over,” Cox explained. “That will be a key question, along with what the flight data and cockpit voice recorders reveal.”

Endeavor Air, a subsidiary of Delta based in Minneapolis, operates the CRJ-900 and is the world’s largest operator of this aircraft model.

The CRJ-900, developed by Bombardier, is part of the same regional jet family as the CRJ-700, which was involved in a midair collision near Washington, D.C., last month.

(With files from AP)