Delta flight to New York makes emergency landing after passengers see FLAMES underneath wing

A Delta Airlines flight from Edinburgh bound for JFK was forced to make an emergency landing shortly after taking off after flames were spotted shooting out from underneath from the wing.

Flight 209 departed at 10:50am bound for New York from Scotland, but an emergency was declared within half an hour of the Boeing 767 taking off and by 11:30am the plane was back on the ground at nearby Glasgow Airport.

Footage shot by one of the passengers shows a stream of flames coming from the rear of the wing in what appears to be an engine surge. 

Anxious passengers could be heard speaking in the background, while some were in tears. 

Some travellers feared for their lives as the crew made preparations for an emergency landing.

A Delta Airlines flight en route from Edinburgh to JFK had to make an emergency landing after an engine surge led to flames coming from underneath the wing

The flames appeared to be coming from the engine having suffered an ‘engine surge’ 

‘An announcement was made that we were heading to Glasgow Prestwick. The noise then cut to nothing like the engines had gone. At this point there was an eerie silence then gasps,’ Julie Nisbet told STV.

‘We saw the captain walk up and down the flight and thought this could be serious.

‘It felt like it was gliding at one point when the engines cut. I didn’t think we’d get down safely. When we did, we clapped and cheered and whistled. I’m just happy to tell the tale.’

‘When the plane touched down we could see fire trucks and firefighters with hoses rushing towards us,’ Nisbet explained to BBC News.

‘We were told to leave all our belongings and get off as quickly as we could. There was no real panic among passengers, more just confusion. However some families with kids were pretty distressed. 

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The Boeing 767 took off at 10:50am but just 30 minutes later, an emergency was declared, and by 11:30 AM the plane had landed at Glasgow Airport

‘The pilots seemed to do a smooth job of getting us down safely. Apparently the cabin crew were preparing for a crash landing.’ 

Four fire engines met the aircraft which Delta has described as a ‘mechanical fault’.

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service also released a statement: ‘We were requested at 11.23am on Friday, February 10, to assist our fire service partners at Prestwick Airport.

‘Operations Control mobilised four appliances to the site, where firefighters remain working to support their partners.’

The airline also released a statement following the incident: ‘Delta flight 209 from Edinburgh to New York-JFK safely diverted to Prestwick, Glasgow after a mechanical issue with the aircraft.

‘We apologise to our customers for this inconvenience and are working to get them to their final destination as quickly as possible.’

Four fire engines met the aircraft which Delta has described as a ‘mechanical fault’ (file photo)

On the other side of the Atlantic, four people have been hospitalized after an empty American Airlines plane stuck a passenger bus on the taxiway at Los Angeles Airport, LAX. 

The plane was being towed to the parking area when the ‘slow-speed collision’ happened near the southside of the terminal around 10pm on Friday, injuring five and hospitalizing four. 

‘A jet being towed tonight from a gate to a parking area made contact with a shuttle bus, resulting in injuries to about five people,’ the airport announced on Twitter. 

The driver, two passengers, and the tug driver were taken to the hospital. Another LAX worker was injured but not hospitalized. They are believed to be in moderate condition, according to Fox News. 

Overhead footage, taken by ABC 7 shows the driver being wheeled toward an ambulance with a head wound wrapped up. 

Four people have been hospitalized after an empty American Airlines plane (left) struck a passenger bus (bottom right) on the taxiway at LAX

The plane was being towed to the parking area when the ‘slow-speed collision’ happened near the southside of the terminal around 10pm on Friday, injuring five and hospitalizing four 

There was reportedly a lot of damage to the underside of the plane under the nose after the collision and video shows the front windows on the bus with deep cracks.

An investigation into the crash has been opened. 

Last month an American Airlines plane narrowly avoided slamming into a Delta plane going 115mph during takeoff at JFK last month. 

The Boeing 737 was traveling at 115mph down a runway at the New York airport at around 8.45pm when an air traffic controller noticed that the American Airlines flight to the UK crossed from an adjacent runway right in front of the departing plane, ABC 7 reports.

Air Traffic Control had told the American Airlines flight to cross ‘runway 31L at Kilo’ but instead crossed runway 4 Left at Juliet, crossing directly in front of the departing Delta flight.

The driver (pictured) was seen being escorted to an ambulance with a head injury 

There was reportedly a lot of damage to the underside of the plane under the nose after the collision and video shows the front windows on the bus with deep cracks (pictured) 

The Delta pilot was forced to abruptly brake, traveling another 661 feet before he came to a complete stop with just 1,000 feet to spare before the plane would have T-boned the American Airlines Boeing 777, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a preliminary statement.

It was then forced to return to the gate, and did not take off again until the next morning, while the American Airlines flight arrived in the UK on time.

A Delta pilot remained cool, calm, and collected, despite nearly colliding nose-first into the side of an American Airlines flight. 

The unnamed pilot could be heard in audio recordings from the JFK air traffic control tower simply saying he will need to make a few phone calls about the nearly fatal crash.

‘Yeah, we’re gonna have to go somewhere, run a couple of checklists and probably make some phone calls for Delta 1943,’ the pilot says calmly. 

LAX confirmed the collision on its Twitter page on Saturday morning 

Earlier this month, a Boeing 767 FedEx cargo plane landing at Austin-Bergstrom International came within less than 100ft of a Southwest Airlines 737 aircraft that was taking off from the same runway.

Analysts say only the quick-thinking of the FedEx pilot prevented a collision.

The FedEx flight was several miles from the airport when it was cleared to land, according to the FAA.

But as it was about to touch down, an air traffic controller also gave the go-ahead for the Southwest Boeing 737 to take off on the exact same stretch of tarmac.

The Southwest flight to Cancun, Mexico still continued its takeoff even while the FedEx cargo plane was directly above it.

The Southwest jet was able to depart safely, according to the FAA.

FedEx said its flight ‘safely landed after encountering an event,’ but declined to comment further because of the ongoing investigations.