New Video Shows the Moment Delta Plane Flipped Upside Down and Burst Into Flames

One moment, a Delta Connection flight was gliding above the tarmac at Toronto Pearson International Airport on Monday, prepared for landing.

The next, it struck the runway forcefully, igniting sparks and flames before eventually flipping over.

The crash of the CRJ-900 jet, operated by Endeavor Air, resulted in injuries to eighteen individuals. According to Fox News, the aircraft was carrying 76 passengers and four crew members.

WARNING: The following video contains vulgar language and graphic images that may be disturbing for some readers. 

The BBC reported that the exact cause of the plane flipping over remains uncertain. Some theories suggest the strong winds present at the time of landing played a role, while others propose the aircraft may have struck a light upon touchdown.

“All of a sudden the fire trucks and helicopters, you know, pushed out on a trolley and thought there was something wrong,” said Ron James, a witness who was scheduled to board a flight, as reported by ABC.

WARNING: The following video contains vulgar language that may be offensive to some readers. 

“Then we were going to get on the plane, and they said, ‘No, you’re not going anywhere,’” he added.

Passenger John Nelson described the journey as “a typical flight from Minneapolis to Toronto.” He noted, “And we were coming in, and I did notice the winds were super gusty. The snow had kinda blown over the runways. So coming it was routine, but it was noticeable that the runways were in kind of a weird condition,” according to the New York Post.

“And when we hit, it was super hard. We hit the ground, and the plane went sideways, and I believe we skidded on our side and flipped over on our back,” he recalled.

“There was a giant firewall down the side. I could actually feel the heat through the glass,” Nelson told ABC, describing the eerie silence before everyone onboard began to evacuate.

“We released the seat belts. I kind of fell to the floor, which is now the ceiling, and helped the lady next to me get out of her seat belt,” Nelson recounted.

“You heard the flight attendants yelling, ‘Open the door. Everybody, take your stuff and get out now,’” he said. “We all worked together and got out of there as quickly as we could.”

“We hit the ground, and we were sideways, and then we were hanging upside down like bats,” passenger Peter Koukov stated. “It all happened pretty, pretty fast. The plane was upside down, obviously. Some people were kind of hanging and needed some help being helped down.”

“The one minute you’re landing and kind of waiting to see your friends and your people, and the next minute you’re physically upside down and just really turned around,” passenger Pete Carlson reflected, saying the impact sounded like “cement and metal, you know.”