Airport worker is killed after being sucked into the engine of a Delta flight taxiing in San Antonio in the latest shocking aviation incident in the US
- The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) confirmed the airline ground crew member died after they went into the engine of a Delta Airlines aircraft
- The plane had just arrived from Los Angeles and was taxiing to a gate at the time of the accident on Friday night
- Delta Flight 1111 had just one engine on at the time when the worker, who is yet to be identified, was sucked in and killed
Emergency services responded to the incident at around 10.25pm on Friday night.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) confirmed the airline ground crew member died after they went into the engine of a Delta Airlines aircraft. The agency described the worker as being 'ingested' into the engine.
The plane had just arrived from Los Angeles and was taxying to a gate at the time of the accident.
Delta Flight 1111 had just one engine on at the time when the worker, who is yet to be identified, was sucked in and killed.
- Emergency personnel on the tarmac after a worker sucked into the engine of Delta plane in San Antonio
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The plane remained at the gate the next morning and flights in the airport were delayed.
The death of the airline ground crew member is being investigated by authorities.
'Delta Flight 1111 was taxying to the gate, with one engine on at that time, and a worker was ingested into that engine at 10.25pm,' the NTSB said in a statement.
'The NTSB has been in contact with Delta. They are in the information gathering process at this point.'
The employee worked for a company that Delta Airlines has contracts with in order to support ground handling operations.
It released a statement on Saturday which read: 'We are heartbroken and grieving the loss of an aviation family member’s life in San Antonio.
'Our hearts and full support are with their family, friends and loved ones during this difficult time.'
San Antonio airport officials said they were 'saddened' by the worker's death.
'An accident occurred on the ground at San Antonio International Airport tonight that resulted in the fatality of an airline ground crew member,' it said.
'We are deeply saddened by this incident and are working with authorities as they begin their investigation. We will share more information as details become available.'
The worker's employee Unifi Aviation said the 'tragic incident' was unrelated to its safety procedures.
'Unifi Aviation is deeply saddened by the loss of our employee at San Antonio International Airport during a tragic incident in the late hours of Friday, June 23, 2023,' it said in a statement.
'Our hearts go out to the family of the deceased, and we remain focused on supporting our employees on the ground and ensuring they are being taken care of during this time.
'From our initial investigation, this incident was unrelated to Unifi’s operational processes, safety procedures and policies.
'Out of respect for the deceased, we will not be sharing any additional information. While police and other officials continue to investigate this incident, we defer to them on providing further details.'
This is the latest incident to occur on the ground at a US airport over the past year.
A subsidiary of American Airlines was fined $15,000 over the death of a ground crew worker who was sucked into the engine of one its planes.
Courtney Edwards, 34, was 'ingested into the engine' at Montgomery Regional Airport, Alabama, on New Year's Eve.
Source:https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...-killed-sucked-engine-tarmac-San-Antonio.html
