The Delta flight that crash-landed and flipped over at Toronto’s main airport last month descended fast enough to set off an emergency alert, according to a preliminary report released Thursday.
Delta Flight 4819 from Minneapolis to Toronto turned upside down and slid across a runway in snowy conditions at Toronto Pearson International Airport on Feb. 17. All 80 people onboard survived, though more than 20 were hospitalized with injuries.
The flight descended rapidly on approach, and seconds before it touched down, the pilots received an automatic “sink rate” alert, according to investigators with Canada’s Transportation Safety Board.
When the plane hit the ground, the landing gear on the right side of the aircraft collapsed. The right wing then hit the ground and separated from the plane, causing fuel to spill across the runway and eventually ignite a fire.
The preliminary report did not identify a specific reason for the crash, whether pilot error, mechanical failure or a combination of factors.
“Accidents and incidents rarely stem from a single cause,” TSB chair Yoan Marier said in a video statement Thursday. “They’re often the result of multiple complex, interconnected factors, many extending beyond the aircraft and its operation to wider systemic issues.”
The Canadian TSB confirmed that both pilots had extensive experience, including hundreds of hours flying Bombardier CRJ-900 planes like the one that crashed. The Canadian TSB is still investigating the crash. Delta said it was cooperating with the probe.