A Delta Air Lines plane carrying 80 people crash-landed at Toronto Pearson Airport yesterday, flipping upside down and injuring at least 18 passengers.
Two individuals in critical condition were airlifted to a trauma center, while a child was taken by ambulance to a downtown hospital. Twelve others sustained minor injuries.
Video from the scene showed the aircraft, Flight 4819—operated by Delta subsidiary Endeavor Air—lying belly-up on the snow-covered tarmac. Footage posted on social media captured passengers being assisted by cabin crew and firefighters spraying the fuselage.
“Our plane crashed. It’s upside down. Most people appear to be OK. We’re all getting off,” wrote John Nelson, a passenger on the flight, in a Facebook post. Speaking to CNN, he described the moment of impact: “We hit the ground, and we were sideways, and then we were upside down.”
Toronto Pearson Airport’s fire chief, Todd Aitken, cautioned against speculation regarding the cause of the crash. “It’s very early on. It’s really important that we do not speculate. What we can say is the runway was dry and there was no crosswind conditions.”
Deborah Flint, CEO of the Toronto airport authority, confirmed that no other aircraft were involved in the accident. Ontario Premier Doug Ford expressed relief that there were no fatalities.
Operations at the airport resumed by 5 p.m. local time, following temporary disruptions. The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) has launched an investigation, with support from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board. The crash occurred amid harsh winter weather, with strong winds and freezing temperatures following a major snowstorm in eastern Canada.
