John Jefferson
Delta Air Lines pushed back against online rumors and “misleading assertions” about the crew aboard Flight 4819, operated by its subsidiary Endeavor Air, which crashed while landing at Toronto Pearson Airport on Monday.
The flight’s captain was hired in October 2007 by Mesaba Airlines and served as an active duty captain and in pilot training and safety capacities, the airline said. Mesaba Airlines merged with Pinnacle Airlines in 2012, leading to the creation of Endeavor Air.
“Assertions that he failed training events are false. Assertions that he failed to flow into a pilot position at Delta Air Lines due to training failures are also false,” the airline said in a statement Thursday.
Endeavor Air hired the first officer in January 2024, and she has been flying with the airline since she completed her training in April. According to Delta, her flight experience time exceeded minimum federal requirements. The airline also said that “assertions that she failed training events are false.”
TORONTO PLANE CRASH TIMELINE: DELTA FLIGHT FROM MINNEAPOLIS FLIPS UPSIDE DOWN WHILE ATTEMPTING TO LAND
Delta also said that both the captain and first officer are “qualified and FAA certified for their positions.”
On Monday, as it was landing at Toronto Pearson Airport, flight 4819 burst into flames before flipping upside down. Images of the wreckage that showed the plane lying belly-up went viral.
No fatalities were reported, but 21 people were injured. According to Delta, the last of the injured passengers was released from the hospital on Thursday.
“The Delta and Endeavor families are grateful that all those injured Monday have been released from the hospital, and we extend our thanks to everyone who provided care to them over the past few days,” Delta CEO Ed Bastian said in a statement.
DELTA OFFERS PAYMENT TO VICTIMS AMID INVESTIGATION OF PLANE THAT FLIPPED UPSIDE DOWN
Delta announced on Wednesday that it would be offering $30,000 to each of the victims aboard flight 4819, including 76 passengers and four crew members.
The payments have “no strings attached,” a spokesperson for the airline told FOX Business, meaning that passengers who accept the $30,000 could potentially still take legal action.
After the crash, Bastian said in an interview with “CBS Mornings” that, despite critics’ assertions, the Trump administration’s budget cuts did not have a negative impact on aviation safety.
“I understand that the cuts at this time are something that are raising questions, but the reality is there’s over 50,000 people that work at the FAA. And the cuts, I understand, were 300 people, and they were in non-critical safety functions,” Bastian said.
Fox News’ Andrea Margolis, Kristine Parks and Julia Bonavita contributed to this report.
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