Tragedy averted at Toronto airport. A Delta flight flipped on the runway while landing. Fifteen people were injured, including a child, three of whom are in critical but not life-threatening condition. "All 80 passengers and crew were evacuated," the Federal Aviation Administration said, noting that the Canada Transportation Safety Board will lead the investigation to determine what happened.
Initial reports indicate that Delta Flight 4819, a Bombardier CRJ-900LR that departed Minneapolis around 11:47 a.m. local time, had begun landing procedures without problems, but something went wrong in the final stages, causing the aircraft to flip on the runway and lose its wings and part of its tail. Images taken by one of the passengers show the evacuation of the aircraft and rescuers on the field to facilitate the procedures on the icy runway.
The crash follows a weekend storm that dumped 9 inches of snow on Toronto . The plane's inversion is the first accident since an American Airlines flight collided with a military helicopter in Washington that killed 67 people. It comes amid a heated debate in the United States over the lack of air traffic control staff, especially in light of cuts to the FAA initiated by the Elon Musk-led government's Department of Efficiency.
According to rumors, hundreds of jobs have already been eliminated in the radar and maintenance areas. Reductions that further complicate the already difficult situation of the FAA which blames the shortage of air traffic controllers on uncompetitive salaries, long shifts, intense training and mandatory retirement.
(Online Union)
