On Monday, February 17, Delta Air Lines Flight 4819 crash-landed at Toronto Pearson International Airport, flipping upside down upon impact.
The aircraft was carrying 76 passengers and four crew members, including 22 Canadian citizens.
The incident occurred around 2:15 p.m. local time.
Everyone on board was accounted for, and while there were no fatalities, several people—including a child—sustained injuries and were taken to the hospital. As of Tuesday morning, 19 had been released.
According to Cory Tkatch, a division commander with Peel Paramedics, some passengers suffered injuries such as back sprains, headaches, nausea, anxiety, and head trauma from exposure to jet fuel.
However, he expressed gratitude that there were no life-threatening injuries or loss of life.
The aircraft, a Bombardier CRJ-900, was arriving from Minneapolis during a winter storm that had hit the region over the weekend. Video shared on social media captured the moment the plane hit the tarmac, burst into flames with thick black smoke, and flipped upside down.
Toronto Pearson Fire Chief Todd Aitken said firefighters quickly extinguished several small fires using specialized firefighting equipment.
Deborah Flint, CEO of the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, reported that Toronto Pearson Airport had accumulated more than 20 inches of snow due to the storm.
Cause of the Crash
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada has launched an investigation into the crash, though there is no immediate word on what caused it.
A pilot familiar with the Bombardier CRJ-900 noted that photos of the wreckage showed the nose landing gear intact, while the main landing gear and two wheels had been sheared off.
He speculated that the aircraft may have been moving laterally rather than straight before losing control, possibly due to icy runway conditions, strong winds, or a combination of both.
While he described the Bombardier CRJ as “an easy plane to land,” he noted that issues such as a frozen brake or a malfunctioning wheel could have occurred during landing. He urged people not to jump to conclusions about the cause of the crash.
Aviation management professor John Gradek called the crash “a miracle” since no lives were lost. He believes multiple factors such as runway conditions, wind, or mechanical failures, could have contributed to the accident.
After reviewing a clear video of the crash circulating online, Gradek stated that the plane appeared to hit the runway “abnormally hard,” with landing gear failure—circumstances he described as “very unusual.”
After the crash, Toronto Pearson International Airport temporarily suspended all operations for several hours before resuming flights in the late afternoon.
Two runways remain closed as the investigation continues.
The last major incident at the airport occurred on August 2, 2005, when an Airbus A340 skidded off the runway while landing and burst into flames. Thankfully, all 309 passengers and crew on board survived.
