An airplane carrying nearly 80 passengers at Pittsburgh’s airport slid off of the icy taxiway before takeoff Wednesday, numerous sources reported.
Delta Air Line Flight 2231, a Boeing 717, was departing Pittsburgh International Airport at around 6:30 p.m. Wednesday for Atlanta when it “exited a taxiway” before takeoff, KDKA reported. The 77 people on board were deplaned and boarded onto shuttles that returned them to the airport terminal at around 9:40 p.m.
NEW PHOTO: Nearly 80 people were on a Delta plane when it went off the taxiway at Pittsburgh International Airport tonight.
READ MORE: https://t.co/oxbMapC6I0 pic.twitter.com/t3i0EjBphy— KDKA (@KDKA) February 11, 2021
— Pittsburgh International Airport (@PITairport) February 11, 2021
No injuries were reported, Pittsburgh International Airport said in a tweet.
— Pittsburgh International Airport (@PITairport) February 11, 2021
“While on taxi-out prior to departure, Delta flight 2231 from Pittsburgh to Atlanta exited the taxiway paved surface. Delta teams worked with the airport authority to safely transport customers back to the terminal. We apologize to our customers for the delay and inconvenience and are working to reaccommodate them as quickly as possible,” Delta Air Lines said in a statement, according to KDKA.
Delta provided another plane for passengers that was set to take off at around 12:30 a.m. Thursday, according to KDKA.
NOW: Delta Airlines flight w/ 77 passengers on board skids off the runway at Pittsburgh International Airport last night before departing for Atlanta. Passenger Tonya Penniman shared this picture w/ us. No injuries were reported, but Penniman said it was scary #wtae pic.twitter.com/khYIAcbuBe
— Katelyn Sykes (@KatelynsWTAE) February 11, 2021
“We started to take some speed, and all of the sudden there is this rumbling, bumping this weird, like if you were slipping on gravel,” Tanya Penniman, a passenger on the plane, told WSB-TV. “And then it was like boom! We were done. It dropped.”
The National Weather Service reported a high of 26 degrees and a low of 18 degrees with light snow on Wednesday in Pittsburgh, along with foggy and misty conditions. (RELATED: Massive Brawl Breaks Out On An Airplane Over The Mask Policy)
The plane appeared to slide off the runway and was hanging over a ravine as of Thursday morning, according to WPXI reporter Jennifer Tomazic. A crew was working to pull the plane back onto the taxiway, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Flights aren’t supposed to be interrupted today at Pittsburgh International Airport as crews work to remove the plane that skidded on the taxiway. You can see how much of it is hanging over a ravine. They’re working to remove it now. @WPXI pic.twitter.com/SALkQorQtO
— WPXIJennifer Tomazic (@JenniferTomazic) February 11, 2021
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a statement Thursday morning confirming that the plane had “slid off an icy taxiway,” KDKA reported.
“Delta Air Lines Flight 2231, a Boeing 717, slid off an icy taxiway at Pittsburgh International Airport at 7 p.m. yesterday. Passengers exited the aircraft using stairs and the airport transported them to the terminal by bus. The aircraft remains at the intersection of Taxiway F5 and Runway 10-Right. The aircraft was taxiing for departure when the incident occurred. The flight was destined for Atlanta, Ga.”