A 30-year-old man died at Salt Lake City International Airport after he accessed the airport's de-icing pad and crawled into a plane's engine, authorities said Tuesday.
Salt Lake City police said the initial investigation began at 9:52 a.m. Monday, when an airport store manager reported a disturbance involving passengers in the secure side of the terminal.
Investigators determined the man exited through an emergency exit door and entered the airport ramp area.
Around 10:10 a.m., police and airport staff found an unconscious man inside an engine attached to the wing of an occupied commercial aircraft on a de-icing pad, the agency said. The aircraft's engines were not running at the time.
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Delta Air Lines announced that a flight to San Francisco with two pilots, three flight attendants and 95 passengers on board was canceled due to the incident. (George Fry/Bloomberg via Getty Images, File)
delta airlines The incident occurred while two pilots, three flight attendants and 95 customers were on board an Airbus A220-100 bound for San Francisco, the airline told Fox News Digital.
Paramedics removed the man from the engine intake cowl and pronounced him dead at the scene despite life-saving efforts, police said.
Police said the incident did not affect overall operations at Salt Lake City International Airport. (George Fry/Bloomberg via Getty Images, File)
Authorities were working to identify the man and his cause of death.
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Delta Air Lines said the flight was forced to return to the gate and was cancelled. The airline said customers affected by the cancellation had rebooked on other flights.
A Delta spokesperson said, “Nothing is more important than the safety and security of our customers and people, so Delta is fully cooperating with all aviation authorities and law enforcement agencies in their investigations.”
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Police said the incident does not affect overall airport operations and no further information has been released at this time.
