ORLANDO, Fla. — Passengers aboard a Delta Air Lines flight were forced to evacuate Monday morning after the aircraft’s engine caught fire while preparing for departure at Orlando International Airport, officials confirmed.
The incident occurred around 11:15 a.m. ET as the jet was pushing back from the gate en route to Atlanta. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, flames were seen shooting from one of the aircraft’s engines, sending thick black smoke into the air and sparking panic on board. Passengers were quickly evacuated using emergency slides as first responders rushed to the scene.
Airport officials said that the Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF) team responded immediately to the blaze, containing the situation without any reported injuries. The cause of the engine fire has not yet been determined, and the FAA has opened an investigation into the incident.
The scheduled flight was delayed for several hours, with travelers now expected to depart Orlando by 5 p.m. ET and arrive in Atlanta shortly before 7 p.m. The disruption comes amid heightened concerns about aviation safety following a string of recent high-profile air travel incidents.
Delta has not released an official comment regarding the Orlando runway fire.
This latest scare follows a series of troubling events for Delta in recent months. In February, a Delta flight crash-landed and flipped at Toronto Pearson International Airport after arriving from Minneapolis. The aircraft burst into flames, forcing passengers to crawl along the ceiling to escape. Over two dozen people were injured, with two critically hurt and transported to trauma centers. A child was also hospitalized.
In a statement at the time, Delta emphasized that its primary concern was assisting affected passengers.
The Orlando engine fire also comes in the shadow of broader concerns across the aviation industry. In January, a deadly midair collision over Washington, D.C., involving a Black Hawk helicopter and an American Airlines jet killed 67 people. That tragedy has since been followed by additional fatal incidents, including the crash of a private jet in Copake, New York, which killed six members of a family en route to a Passover celebration.
Among the victims of the Copake crash were Dr. Michael Groff, a prominent neurosurgeon and the pilot, his wife Dr. Joy Saini, a leading urogynecologist, their daughter Karena Groff, her partner James Santoro, the couple’s son Jared Groff, and his partner Alexia Couyutas Duarte, who was preparing to attend Harvard Law School.
As federal investigators review the circumstances surrounding the Orlando Delta fire, questions continue to mount over mechanical reliability and airline safety protocols amid rising flight volume nationwide.
