A Delta Air Lines flight was forced to return to Atlanta shortly after takeoff after crew members detected smoke in the cockpit, according to officials from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
Delta Air Lines Flight 876 had departed from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and was en route to Columbia Metropolitan Airport in South Carolina when the crew reported a “possible smoke” in the cabin.
FAA officials confirmed that the flight landed safely back at Atlanta International Airport, and all passengers were evacuated.
Delta Airlines cabin fills with smoke mid-flight from Atlanta to South Carolina, forced to return for emergency landing. All 94 people on board evacuated via slides.
Just a week ago, another Delta aircraft flipped upside down in Toronto pic.twitter.com/rcVLrWcmqR
— Areacode416ix (@areacode416ix) February 25, 2025
Delta Air Lines issued a statement confirming that a Boeing 717 departed from Atlanta on Monday morning with 94 passengers onboard when “a haze inside the aircraft was observed.”
According to the statement, the pilot declared an emergency as soon as the crew reported smoke, allowing the flight to receive priority handling from air traffic controllers.
An AP report noted that upon landing, airport first responders deployed slides to ensure passengers could exit the aircraft immediately. Delta spokesperson Samantha Moore Facteau told AP that “EMTs attended to two customers.”
Delta’s statement further emphasized, “Nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and people and we apologize to our customers for the experience.”
New footage shows passengers evacuate a smoke-filled Delta Airlines plane in Atlanta, reporting that oxygen masks failed to deploy and that pilots remained unaware of the smoke for several minutes pic.twitter.com/5KBsaPy8iJ
— Levan Gudadze (@GudadzeLevan) February 25, 2025
Videos circulating on social media captured smoke filling the cabin of a Delta Air Lines flight, with passengers covering their mouths and noses for protection.
This incident occurred just two days after a Delta Air Lines flight en route to Australia turned back to Los Angeles International Airport “after smoke was detected in the galley,” as reported by NBC News.
In another significant event, a Delta Air Lines flight crash-landed and overturned upon landing in Toronto last week, resulting in injuries to 21 people.
