Delta Air Lines offers $30K to crash survivors as crews begin removing plane from runway
Some passengers consider legal action as investigation into cause of crash continues
Delta Air Lines says it is offering $30,000 to the passengers of a plane that crashed at Toronto's Pearson International Airport as crews begin to remove the mangled aircraft from the runway.
"Delta Care Team representatives are telling customers this gesture has no strings attached and does not affect rights," Grant Myatt, spokesperson for the airline, said in an email on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) says efforts are underway to move the crashed plane off the tarmac.
"Efforts have begun to remove the aircraft from the runway, and it will be moved to a hangar where it will undergo further examination. The site will be released following further examination and clean-up," the TSB said in an update Wednesday.
Some of the survivors of the crash are considering legal action.
Two have now hired a Toronto-based law firm that specializes in aviation cases, according to the firm.
In a news release Wednesday, law firm Rochon Genova wrote that its clients were hurt in the crash and were instrumental in opening an emergency exit door to help others escape.
"With our involvement, we expect to reach a timely and fair resolution for these clients and others who reach out to us," lawyer Vincent Genova said in the release.
In an interview with The Canadian Press, Genova said that both of his clients were injured in the crash, including one who returned to the hospital Wednesday to follow up about a possible head injury.
Genova also said he was working with an American law firm who had been retained by U.S. clients.
"We're probably going to start our own investigation to determine if there are any other parties that should be involved in potential litigation moving forward," he said in the same interview.
Meanwhile, the official investigation into what caused Monday's fiery crash landing continues, causing delays and some cancellations for flights leaving from Pearson.
Delays continue at Pearson airport
Delta Flight 4819 from Minneapolis to Toronto crashed on landing at about 2:13 p.m. Monday, leaving passengers scrambling to flee the upside-down plane as firefighters doused the flames.
Two of Pearson's runways remain closed in the wake of the incident, including an east-west runway that staff have described as the busiest runway in the country.
As a result, the airport had to put a cap on departures throughout Wednesday, and a similar step had been taken to manage arrivals.
Late Wednesday afternoon, Sunwing Airlines announced it was cancelling some southbound flights leaving from Toronto to "prioritize the safe return of customers currently delayed in destinations due to recent weather disruptions, crew availability constraints and extremely limited hotel capacity."
All customers will receive a full refund, the airline said.
In an update on Wednesday, Delta Air Lines said that 20 of the 21 people sent to hospital after the crash have now been released — one more than had been released yesterday.
It said its care team is providing crash survivors with hotels, meals and transportation, and is now working on the process of reuniting people with their baggage on board on the mangled Mitsubishi CRJ-900LR.
"Securing, identifying, sorting and cleaning all belongings left onboard could take a matter of weeks before all items can be safely returned," said the statement.
Hard landing gives clues to possible crash cause
Investigators with the Transportation Safety Board of Canada said Tuesday they've recovered the plane's black box and sent it off for analysis, but it's too soon to say what led to the crash.
Airport authorities said the wreckage of the aircraft was expected to remain on the runway for about 48 hours until the investigators finish their work.
Keith Mackey, a former airline captain and the president of Mackey International, an aviation consulting firm, says video of the crash provides clues as to what may have gone wrong in the flight's landing. He is not affiliated with the official investigation.
"The approach looks relatively normal," he said during an interview on CBC Radio's Metro Morning. "But as it approaches, it never breaks its descent, it never flares out to touch the runway gently." The landing flare is a technique used by pilots that involves slightly lifting the plane's nose to slow the speed to ensure a softer touchdown.
Mackey said he thinks investigators will work to determine the forces that were acting on the plane as it descended — and to get answers on why no flare took place.
Kit Darby, a U.S.-based veteran aviator and flight instructor, also suggested in an interview with The Canadian Press that gusty winds and possible mechanical issues with the landing gear may have been contributing factors in Monday's crash.
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With files from Radio-Canada and The Canadian Press