Plane passengers evacuated after ‘smoke fills cabin’ and causes emergency landing

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video. Up Next. This is the moment plane passengers were forced to flee an aircraft and use clothing to cover their faces as clouds of smoke filled the cabin.

The Delta flight took off from Atlanta, Georgia, to Columbia, South Carolina, on Monday, but was forced to return and make an emergency landing. The smoke was reported by crew members shortly after takeoff and an emergency was declared. Video footage shared shows the terrified passengers inside the cabin covering their mouths with clothing.

A passenger on the flight, Kevin McKinney, told Fox 5 Atlanta: ‘You heard just about the entire plane, you know, yelling, the cabins filling with smoke because no one was doing anything. No one was coming over the intercom saying anything at first. ‘Pilot came on, and announced, “Evacuate the plane immediately,” and it was chaos.

‘I’ve never had to evacuate a plane before, it seems like this is something that’s becoming more of an issue lately. You know, maybe some of these older planes need to be retired and, get some new wings in the air.’. All 94 passengers on board, including two pilots and three flight attendants, fled the aircraft on emergency slides once it landed.

Pictures from the scene show passengers desperately clinging to their belongings and standing on the left wing of the aircraft. Two of the passengers were treated by emergency services but were released, according to the airline. Fire crews helped passengers off the aircraft and they were taken back to the airport via ground transportation and Delta confirmed another flight was booked for customers to Columbia.

A Delta spokesperson said: ‘The flight crew followed procedures to return to Atlanta when a haze inside the aircraft was observed after departure. ‘Nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and people, and we apologise to our customers for the experience.’.

The Federal Aviation Administration said: ‘Delta Air Lines Flight 876 returned safely to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport around 9 am local time on Monday, February 24, after the crew reported possible smoke in the flightdeck.’. The FAA confirmed that it will investigate the incident.

The incident had a ‘moderate impact to operations’ at the airport. The news comes after a Delta aircraft flipped upside down in icy conditions at Canada’s Toronto Pearson Airport. Pictures taken at the scene showed passengers being led out of the upside-down plane and on to the icy airport runway.

Smoke could be seen rising from the fuselage while firefighters doused it in water. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. For more stories like this, check our news page. Arrow MORE: London resident says pedicabs are ‘worst thing ever invented’.

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