DENVER- A Delta Air Lines (DL) Airbus A320 operating flight DL1648 sustained visible nose damage from a mechanical issue and landed safely in Denver (DEN) on Monday (November 11, 2024).
The aircraft, carrying 148 passengers and six crew members, departed Detroit (DTW) and landed in Denver but with some damage to the radome section.
Delta A320 Damage
According to FlightRadar24 data, Delta flight DL1648 took off from Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW) at 12:51 local time.
The flight remained airborne for two hours and 39 minutes and it was a pretty smooth ride maintaining 32,000 feet (FL320) level as seen in the flight data.
The aircraft landed safely at Denver International Airport (DEN) at 1:30 PM local time.
The flight DL1648 was operated by a 26.9-year-old Airbus A320-200 registered as N351NW.
Denver7 reported that Delta crews detected a mechanical issue in the aircraft’s nose, but the flight landed and taxied to the gate without further incident.
Delta maintenance teams are inspecting the aircraft, which will undergo overnight repairs. The airline apologized to its passengers for disrupting the passengers’ travel plans.
A Delta spokesperson clarified with Denver7 News agency that there was no report of the aircraft being struck. No injuries were reported.
However, some suggest that it could be Foreign Object Damage (FOD). Also, the possibility of being a bird strike is very unlike as the crew could have noticed something. Let’s wait for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report.
FAA in an Aviation Safety Information Analysis and Sharing (ASIAS) said,
THE AIRCRAFT LANDED AND POST-FLIGHT INSPECTION REVEALED NOSE CONE COLLAPSED FOR UNKNOWN REASONS DURING THE FLIGHT, DENVER, CO.”
FAA Aviation Safety Information Analysis and Sharing (ASIAS
In a separate incident on November 11, Delta Boeing 737, registered as N876DN right-wing struck the top of a catering truck at Sacramento Airport (SMF).
Similar Incidents
Qantas Airways (QF) flight QF6, operated by a Boeing 787, sustained damage during takeoff from Rome Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport (FCO) en route to Perth International Airport (PER) on August 24, 2024. Images shared by users on X indicated that the aircraft’s structure was impacted by a separated tyre tread.
In a statement to Aviation A2Z, Qantas clarified that the tread separated from one of the Dreamliner’s tyres, damaging the lower right wing. The tyre remained inflated, and the flight proceeded without any safety impact.
Pilots, crew, and passengers were unaware of the incident, and the aircraft landed in Perth without issues. Engineers discovered the damage during a post-flight inspection.
In a separate incident, an Emirates (EK) Boeing 777 struck a flock of flamingos late on May 20, 2024, over the Laxmi Nagar area, Mumbai (BOM), India. Forest officials confirmed the collision led to the deaths of 36 flamingos.
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