A passenger jet skidded off a runway at LaGuardia Airport and crashed into a fence as it tried to land amid a blinding wintry mix Thursday morning, sparking a fuel leak in one of its wings and prompting evacuations, Port Authority officials and sources familiar with the situation tell NBC 4 New York.
At least 125 passengers and five crew members were on Delta flight 1086, an MD-88 headed to New York from Atlanta, Georgia, when it slid off the runway around 11 a.m., authorities said. The impact caused a fuel leak on the plane’s left wing, a Port Authority source said; the extent of the damage was not clear but the leak was not believed to be significant.
No major injuries were reported, the Port Authority said, though at least two people were seen being taken to the terminal on stretchers. LaGuardia runways were shut down and the city’s Office of Emergency Management said all incoming and outgoing flights were suspended until further notice.
About 3 inches of snow had fallen in New York at the time of the accident, but wind, sleet and snowflakes combined to hamper visibility and make paved surfaces slippery. NBC 4 New York meteorologists say freezing fog was observed near LaGuardia around 11 a.m., which likely coated the already snow-topped runways with an icy glaze and may have contributed to the crash.
Crews were asked about the runway the Delta flight was approaching, Runway 13, about half an hour prior to the scheduled Delta landing, according to air traffic control logs from LiveATC.net.
They advised air traffic control in the tower that there was about a quarter inch of wet snow on the runway and a snow bank about a foot high. The tower repeated the conditions back.
“Affirmative, and the runways have not been treated,” crews responded, according to the LiveATC.net logs. “We’re just grooming and plowing.”
The logs later capture the moment air traffic controllers try to get in touch with the flight.
“Delta 1086 … Delta 1086? Delta 1086, tower are you with me?” controllers are heard saying.
The pilot does not respond, and controllers are heard over the next few minutes speaking with ever-increasing urgency as the assess the situation.
“The airport is closed, the airport is closed. We have a 3-4,” one voice says.
“We have an aircraft off the runway. LaGuardia Airport is closed at this time.”
Photos posted to Twitter and other social media showed the tail of the plane dipping into the snow; the nose was pointed upward and appeared to be damaged. Other photos showed the front of the plane smashed through the fence as passengers climbed out onto a wing and trudged through snow to safety.
Video posted to Instagram from Giants tight end Larry Donnell, who said that he had been on the flight, shows orderly exits as passengers respond to directions from officials in orange reflective vests. Multiple emergency crews from several agencies, local and federal, responded.
In a statement, Delta said all customers deplaned safely and were transported to the terminal.
“Our priority is ensuring our customers and crew members are safe,” the airline said. “Delta will work with all authorities and stakeholders to look into what happened in this incident.”
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.
In October, a Delta MD-88 flight from Atlanta with about 63 people on board struck the concrete pier supporting the same runway involved in Thursday’s accident, Runway 13, and had its landing gear ripped off. The 75-ton plane skidded, 2,700 feet on its nose wheel and belly; the fuselage cleared the pier by only 16 inches, according to NTSB data. Three minor injuries were reported.
NBC News.
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