Fumes Lead to Emergency Landings on 2 Delta Flights

Two Delta flights this week made unplanned stops after crews reported fumes in the cabin, though both landed without any injuries, People reports. On Tuesday, a New York-to-Chicago flight declared an in-air emergency so it could land quickly at O'Hare, its intended destination, after fumes were detected; 130 people exited normally and the plane was pulled from service for inspection, the airline said. A day earlier, a Jacksonville-to-New York flight diverted to Raleigh-Durham when an odor was noticed mid-flight, with 113 people deplaning at the gate. Delta staffers worked to get them on other flights, WRAL reports.

Delta says crews followed established safety procedures in both cases and that the source of the fumes is under investigation. The carrier, which operates about 5,000 flights daily, called such smoke and odor events uncommon but said it treats each one seriously. In another Delta incident Sunday, a LA-Salt Lake City flight descended 27,000 feet in 10 minutes due to a pressurization issue that required the crew to bring it to a lower altitude, Fox News reports. Oxygen masks dropped during the incident, but the plane landed in Las Vegas safely and passengers took other flights.