Delta Airliner Flips Upside Down on Landing with No Fatalities but Several Injured

What Happened?

A Delta airliner flipped upside down just after landing at Toronto International Airport, severely damaging the aircraft and injuring several passengers. 

Thankfully no fatalities were reported although two of the twenty-one injured remained hospitalized. The dramatic crash was caught on a video which showed the plane touching down briefly before flipping upside down, tearing off a wing in the process and catching fire. 

Local authorities have not given any indications as to the cause of the crash. 

“This would not be a time for us to have theory or to speculate on what caused the crash," said Deborah Flint, CEO of the Greater Toronto Airports Authority. 

Why it Matters

The crash of the Delta flight from Minneapolis to Toronto is the latest in a string of incidents which have hit the aviation industry. 

From the fatal collision of a U.S. Army Blackhawk helicopter with an American Airlines passenger plane in Washington D.C. to the crash of a twin-engine turboprop in Alaska. Such a high number of incidents over a relatively short period of time is unusual for the aviation sector.

What was the cause of this latest crash in Toronto? 

Retired U.S. Navy pilot Captain Armen Kurdian suggested that a possible cause was structural or mechanical failure. Because one of the wings snapped off, the weight imbalance caused the aircraft to begin a rapid rotation to the opposite side, which caused it to flip. 

Since the plane was already so close to the ground due to landing, once the flip was completed the plane impacted the ground and remained there. 

A full investigation will be required to reach a permanent conclusion, but the video evidence does support Captain Kurdian’s assessment. Why would one of the wings separate from the aircraft? 

There are several possibilities. Structural failure could have been triggered by a hard landing which pushed the load on the wing beyond its breaking point could have been responsible. 

There was bad weather in the form of wind gusts in the area at the time of the crash, but the plane did appear to make it to the runway without difficulty. 

Before the D.C. collision between the Army helicopter and the American Airlines passenger plane, there hadn’t been a major airline disaster in the United States since 2009. 

Why there have been so many incidents over a short time in the last few weeks remains unknown. But detailed investigations will likely uncover the root causes.

How it Affects You

Despite the number of incidents in the aviation industry in the past few weeks, air travel remains a safe form of transportation. 

Thousands of flights take off and land each day in the United States without incident.

That is due to the skill and training of the crews, maintainers, and aviation professionals in addition to existing regulations.