Flights resume at Pearson after crash Monday, 19 passengers released from hospitals

Photo: The Canadian Press

Pearson International Airport firefighters work on an upside down Delta Air Lines plane, which was heading from Minneapolis to Toronto when it crashed on the runway, in Toronto, Monday, Feb. 17, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Teresa Barbieri

UPDATE 2:30 p.m.

A veteran aviator and flight instructor says videos posted online of the Delta plane crash suggest the flight did not appear to slow its descent right before it touched down with a "flare" – or an upward motion of its nose.

U.S.-based consultant Kit Darby also says the videos appear to show the plane's right wing touching the ground, leading to the plane flipping over.

He says while it is difficult to tell how hard the landing was, the plane's landing gear is designed to withstand very high levels of impact, and something may have broken in order for the wing to touch the ground during landing.

Peel Region paramedics say they treated a "multitude of injuries" at the scene of Monday's crash, including back sprains and head injuries, as well as nausea from exposure to jet fuel fumes.

Emergency crew supervisors say the firefighters' response to the fiery plane crash was "very quick" and "textbook."

But they deflected questions about the state of the runway and weather conditions at the time of the crash, citing an ongoing investigation by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada.

Pearson airport authorities say the wreckage of the plane is expected to remain on the runway for the next 48 hours as investigators try to piece together the cause of the crash.

Greater Toronto Airports Authority President and CEO Deborah Flint told reporters that the airport is in "recovery mode" after hundreds of flights were cancelled or delayed because of the crash and two winter storms that hit the region in the days leading up to it.

Flint says investigators from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada are on scene, as well as teams from Delta Air Lines, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation.

She says a statement from the TSB is expected sometime in the afternoon.

UPDATE 9:25 a.m.

Video of the Delta Airlines crash at Toronto’s Pearson Airport has been published on social media.

The video posted by @airmainengineer on X shows the aircraft hitting the runway and bursting into flames.

Twenty-one injured passengers were initially taken to various hospitals. 19 of those patients have now been released.

The video below has strong language.

Clearist footage showing the crash moment of Delta - Endevoir Air CRJ-900 Flight DL4819 from Minneapolis (MSP) to Toronto (YYZ) with registration N932XJ.
We will share the reports as soon as available. pic.twitter.com/4XRAdJt3c0

— aircraftmaintenancengineer (@airmainengineer) February 18, 2025

UPDATE 7:25 a.m.

Delta Air Lines says 19 passengers taken to Toronto-area hospitals after the plane crash have been released as of this morning.

Delta says 21 injured passengers were initially taken to various hospitals and the airline's incident response team was deployed to Pearson airport on Monday evening.

The airline says it is offering support to affected passengers and their loved ones.

It says Delta and Delta Connection flights have resumed at Pearson airport today.

ORIGINAL 5:42 a.m.

Flights have resumed at Toronto's Pearson airport, but two runways are closed as investigators from Canada's Transportation Safety Board begin their work on what may have caused a plane crash Monday.

Pearson said flights are arriving and departing, but advised travellers to check the status of their flight before heading to the airport.

At least 18 people were injured after a regional Delta Air Lines flight from Minneapolis crashed upon landing in Toronto and flipped over around 2:30 p.m.

Paramedics said out of 80 people aboard Delta Air Lines flight 4819, at least three people, including a child, were sent to hospital with critical but non-life-threatening injuries. Others were reported to have minor injuries.

There were no reports of deaths in the crash as of Tuesday morning.

The plane arrived at Pearson amid blowing snow following a winter storm that hit the Toronto region over the weekend.

Videos posted to social media showed emergency crews hosing down the flipped-over aircraft with a damaged wing while passengers climbed out of emergency exits to the snowy tarmac.

Gusting winds up to 65 km/h and blowing snow were reported at the airport around the time of the crash.

Arrivals and departures at Pearson resumed by 5 p.m. on Monday, but the airport said delays were expected over the coming days as crash investigators did their work.

Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford had been set to make an announcement in Sault Ste. Marie on Tuesday morning, but the party said that event was delayed as Ford's flight from Toronto didn't take off on time.