In early February, a Delta Air Lines flight carrying nearly 300 passengers was forced to turn back. It had to divert to a distant island in the Azores due to a mechanical failure. The flight that departed from Madrid on Sunday was en route to New York. Five minutes after takeoff, issues developed, making the aircraft have to divert to nearby Lajes air force base on the island.
After all passengers were accounted for, the mechanical was determined to be an issue with one of the engines. A Delta spokesperson confirmed that the decision to divert was made after an indication of a mechanical issue with an engine.
No injuries were reported, and the flight landed without incident. Delta is truly sorry for our customers’ experience with Delta, and for the impacts this has caused across their travel plans.
After touching down in Lajes passengers were quickly deplaned and escorted to lodgings at local hotels for the night. Delta Air Lines tweeted a few hours later that they would fully compensate those who were affected by the diversion. They are yet to release the detailed plan of those compensation packages.
That same day, a separate Delta flight burst into flames and flipped upside down while landing in Toronto. While this diversion was unfolding, this incident was taking place. That same flight had come in originally from Minneapolis, and all 18 passengers who suffered injuries from the emergency landing. Close to 282 passengers and 13 crew members were on the flight. This episode only compounds the airline’s recent streak of self-inflicted woes.
Delta is taking measures to address the concerns of its customers and ensure their safety during travel.