Newly released photos show how investigators are dissecting what happened in the moments leading up to the crash at Toronto Pearson.
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TSB publishes its initial findings into Flight 4819 The federal agency published its preliminary report dissecting what happened in the moments leading up to the CRJ-900's crash-landing at Toronto Pearson on Feb. 17, which sent 21 people to the hospital.
This image displays the aerial view of Flight 4819's wreckage resting on Runway 15L, with its detached wing seen in the background on Runway 23. (Peel Regional Police) (Bhandari, Uttam)
CRJ-900 is moved to a nearby hangar for investigation The TSB moved the airplane to a nearby hangar to conduct its investigation and simulate the crash conditions to understand how the accident was caused, but Ken Webster, the lead investigator, says the investigation is far from complete. (Transportation Safety Board of Canada)
Wreckage lifted off the Toronto Pearson runway In this image, TSB investigators are looking at the CRJ-900 as it is being moved to the nearest hangar, belonging to the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, soon after the accident at Pearson Airport. (Transportation Safety Board of Canada)
The plane landed at an extraordinary rate of speed The rate at which the CRJ-900 was descending was clocked at 1114 feet per minute when the aircraft was 50 feet away from the tarmac.
"One second later … the (enhanced ground proximity warning system) alert 'sink rate; sounded, indicating a high rate of descent," the TSB said. (Transportation Safety Board of Canada)
(Bhandari, Uttam)
Landing gear could only absorb a fraction of that rate Officials defined a hard landing as when a plane is descending at a rate higher than 600 feet per minute, with this aircraft's landing gear only able to absorb the energy of 720 feet per minute.
"When they impacted the ground, it was way beyond the structural limits of the aircraft," aviation expert Phyl Durdey told CP24 on Thursday. (Bhandari, Uttam)
Where the plane crash-landed at Toronto Pearson The Endeavor Air flight first struck down on the tarmac about 420 feet (128 metres) past Runway 23's threshold, the report finds. The aircraft slid further down the runway, rolling to the right until it rested belly-up on Runway 15L around 1,800 feet (nearly 549 metres) beyond the threshold.
The CRJ'900's right wing severed from the fuselage, the aircraft's body, and was found about 215 feet (65.5 metres) away from the plane.
(Bhandari, Uttam)
Plane's right wing slid across the runway According to the initial findings, when the plane touched down, the side-stay attached to the right main landing gear fractured, the landing gear retracted, and the wing ripped off from the fuselage, releasing a "cloud of jet fuel" in its wake. Soon after, the fuel ignited. (Transportation Safety Board of Canada)
Inside the inverted aircraft Once the plane came to a full-stop, resting upside down, the TSB said all 80 passengers were "hanging upside down in their seats, suspended by their safety belts." Twenty-one people were injured, with two of them sustaining serious injuries, the TSB adds.
According to the federal agency, some of the passengers sustained their injuries when they unbuckled themselves from their seats and fell to the ceiling. As of March 20, the TSB said it is unaware of "any safety belt or seat failures occurring during the accident." (Transportation Safety Board of Canada)
(Bhandari, Uttam)
Jammed shut The TSB found that due to the fuselage's damage and the flight attendant jump seat blocking the flight deck door, the pilots had to use an escape hatch on the cockpit sealing to evacuate.
"The hatch opening was close to the ground, which impeded the evacuation; however, with help from a passenger, the pilots were able to egress," the report reads. (Transportation Safety Board of Canada) (Bhandari, Uttam)
CRJ-900 aircraft The CRJ-900 aircraft resting at the GTAA hangar after the accident at Toronto Pearson Airport, Ontario. (Transportation Safety Board of Canada)
The investigation into the accident continues Thursday's findings only offer a first look into what happened that February afternoon. The flight data and cockpit records, as well as the plane's Emergency Locator Transmitter, have all been submitted for further analysis. The TSB says the investigation continues, looking at a myriad of factors to determine what caused the accident exactly. (Transportation Safety Board of Canada)
Delta Air Lines plane crash-lands at Toronto's Pearson airport
Delta Air Lines plane crash-lands, flips over at Toronto's Pearson airport
Delta Air Lines plane crash-lands, flips over at Toronto's Pearson airport
Delta Air Lines plane crash-lands, flips over at Toronto's Pearson airport
Plane crashes at Toronto Pearson Emergency response vehicles are seen nearby an upside down Delta Air Lines plane, which was heading from Minneapolis to Toronto when it crashed on the runway at Pearson International Airport, in Toronto, Monday, Feb. 17, 2025. (Teresa Barbieri/The Canadian Press)
Plane crashes at Toronto Pearson
Plane crashes at Toronto Pearson A Delta airlines plane is seen upside on the runway at Toronto's Pearson international airport (Jacob Estrin).
Plane crashes at Toronto Pearson
Plane crashes at Toronto Pearson
Plane crashes at Toronto Pearson
Plane crashes at Toronto Pearson
Plane crashes at Toronto Pearson
Plane crashes at Toronto Pearson
Plane crashes at Toronto Pearson
Pearson plane crash Strong wind gusts can be seen at the scene of a plane crash at Toronto Pearson airport on Feb. 17, 2025. (Jacob Estrin/CTV News Toronto)
Plane crashes at Toronto Pearson
Plane crashes at Toronto Pearson
'It's upside down': Plane crashes at Toronto's Pearson airport
'It's upside down': Plane crashes at Toronto's Pearson airport
Pearson plane crash Emergency responders surround a flipped-over plane that crashed at Toronto Pearson airport on Feb. 17, 2025. (Tom Podolec/CP24)
Toronto Pearson plane crash A Delta Air Lines plane is seen upside down on the runway at Toronto's Pearson International Airport. (Jacob Estrin)
Toronto Pearson airplane crash An image of the plane crash at Toronto Pearson International Airport.
Delta Air Lines plane crashes at Pearson airport
Eight people transported to hospital following plane crash at Pearson's Terminal 3 runway
Pearson plane crash closeup Feb. 17 A close-up shot of a flipped over plane that crashed at Toronto Pearson airport on Feb. 17, 2025. (Tom Podolec/CP24)
Pearson plane crash Crews work to douse a fire on a plane that crashed at Toronto Pearson airport on Feb. 17, 2025. (Tom Podolec/CP24)
Commuter plane upside down on tarmac after crash landing at Pearson airport
Pearson plane crash A flipped-over plane is seen on Runway 23 at Pearson airport following a Feb. 17, 2025, crash. (Tom Podolec/CP24)
Pearson plane crash Passengers are led away as Pearson International Airport firefighters work on a Delta Air Lines plane, which was heading from Minneapolis to Toronto when it crashed on the runway, in a Monday, Feb. 17, 2025, still image made from handout video.
Pearson plane crash An Ornge air helicopter arrives at Toronto Pearson airport after a plane crashed on Runway 23 on Feb. 17. (Jacob Estrin/CTV News Toronto)
Pearson plane crash A Peel Regional Paramedic Services ambulance is seen leaving the scene of a Feb. 17 plane crash at Toronto Pearson Airport. (Jacob Estrin/CTV News Toronto)
Pearson plane crash Police escort two ambulances as they leave the scene of a Feb. 17 plane crash at Toronto Pearson airport. (Jacob Estrin/CTV News Toronto)
Pearson plane crash Emergency crews remain at the scene of a Feb. 17 plane crash at Toronto Pearson airport. (Tom Podolec/CP24)
Pearson plane crash A flipped-over plane lies on Runway 23 at Toronto Pearson airport on Feb. 17. (Jacob Estrin/CTV News Toronto)
Pearson plane crash An ambulance leaves the scene of a plane crash at Toronto Pearson airport on Feb. 17. (Jacob Estrin/CTV News Toronto)
Pearson plane crash An aircraft from Delta Air Lines sits upside down on the tarmac at Toronto Pearson International Airport on Monday, Feb. 17, 2024. (Teresa Barbieri/The Canadian Press)
Pearson plane crash Paramedics tend to a patient outside an ambulance following a Feb. 17 plane crash at Toronto Pearson airport. (Jacob Estrin/CTV News Toronto)
Pearson plane crash Feb. 17 Emergency crews remain at the scene of a Feb. 17 plane crash at Toronto Pearson airport. (Tom Podolec/CP24)
