On Sunday, a Delta Air Lines flight landing in Detroit slid off a taxiway and into the grass due in part to snowy conditions at the airport.
According to the Detroit Free Press, Delta Air Lines Flight DL 724 had just landed at Detroit Metropolitan Airport, arriving from Buffalo, N.Y., when it began turning off the runway and onto the taxiway. The plane then skidded off the pavement and became stuck in the snow-covered grass.
At the time of the incident, there were 65 passengers and five crew members onboard, but there were no reported injuries. The passengers were removed from the plane safely and bused to the terminal about an hour late.
“Shortly before noon today, a Delta aircraft, inbound from Buffalo, NY, slid off a taxiway at Detroit Metropolitan Airport. There were no injuries,” a Detroit Metro Airport spokesperson said in a statement. “The Airport Authority and Delta Air Lines worked together to safely deplane the passengers and transport them to the terminal. Delta Air Lines is assisting any passengers impacted by the incident.”
“The cause is under investigation,” the statement continued. “Despite the incident, operations are continuing at DTW. However, due to the weather conditions, travelers are reminded to check with their airline to confirm their flight status.”
Twitter users shared images of the incident on social media:
We got to exit off the tail of the plane. That was kind of cool. pic.twitter.com/TC2XJZgCPe
— Isaac Price (@FFMBA3N) December 11, 2016
Some excitement in Detroit trying to get home from MLS Cup #ebfgawayMLSCup everyone’s ok, but definitely not making the connecting flight pic.twitter.com/As8ZNajpvK
— Ryan (@rizmo82) December 11, 2016
While it is unclear how much of a role the snow played in the accident, winter storms have caused havoc throughout the Midwest over the weekend, including the cancelation of over 1,800 flights Sunday alone.
Delta Air Lines spokesman Anthony Black confirmed that the airline launched an investigation into what caused the plane to skid off the taxiway.
