Person who jumped perimeter fence is hit and killed by Frontier plane during takeoff on Denver runway, airport says

A man was killed late Friday when he jumped a perimeter fence and crashed into a Frontier Airlines plane two minutes after crossing the runway at Denver International Airport, the airport said.

In the statement made by the airport, it was stated that the unidentified pedestrian is not believed to be an airport employee. expression.

In the statement of Frontier Airlines, it was stated that Airbus A321 type flight 4345 departed from Denver to Los Angeles and carried 224 passengers and seven crew members.

There are approximately 36 miles of perimeter fencing surrounding the airport. An inspection after the incident found the fence to be intact, but the airport said it would conduct an “incident analysis” and review its perimeter security program in the coming days.

The airport said it uses video surveillance and a “combination of technology” to monitor the area and conducts “continuous perimeter fencing inspections.”

According to the statement made by the airport, the runway was reopened and the passengers evacuated from the plane were placed on other flights.

12 people were injured on the plane

“The aircraft reportedly hit a pedestrian on the runway during takeoff,” the airline said. According to the statement made by the airport, the incident occurred at 23.19 local time. The plane was scheduled to take off at 22.39.

The statement said, “Smoke was reported in the cabin and the pilots canceled the takeoff. Later, as a precaution, the passengers were evacuated safely through slides.”

In the statement made by the airport, it was stated that the short-term engine fire was quickly extinguished by the Denver Fire Department. expression Saturday early.

Medical teams arrived at the scene and took the passengers to the terminal. According to the airport, 12 people suffered minor injuries and five were transported to local hospitals.

Passenger Jose Cervantes said he was just beginning to feel the plane tilt upward when he heard a thud.

“I looked to my right and saw the right wing burning and literally exploding,” Cervantes said. CNN affiliate KCNC. “The plane comes back down and they kind of turn side by side, then they stop, they just shut down, and then the cabin starts to fill with smoke.”

“I thought I was going to burn to death. You know, when I saw the fire and the smoke, I thought I was going to burn,” Cervantes said.

He told KCNC that Cervantes’ mother was one of the injured passengers. “My mom actually went down the slide and had to lock her knee when she hit the ground,” Cervantes said. “He doesn’t have any fractures, but we still need to take him to the emergency room.”

Shaken by the incident, John Anthens, 56, and his 30-year-old son chose to skip their flight to Nebraska and rent a car for the eight-hour drive.

Anthens said the incident was very traumatic. “I saw a small spark and then I saw and heard a big explosion that sounded like a bomb going off,” he told CNN, describing seeing the engine explode.

CNN has reached out to the Denver Fire Department and the Border for more information.

The National Transportation Safety Board is cooperating with the FAA, Denver International Airport operations and local law enforcement to gather information regarding the incident. The FAA confirmed to CNN that it is investigating.

The NTSB told CNN it would only review the evacuation of the plane to determine whether it met the criteria for a safety investigation. Will not investigate security breach or trespasser.

‘We hit someone’

Air traffic control audio shared by the ATC.com app captured the moment a pilot from the Frontier flight told controllers that the plane had “hit someone.” A few seconds later, a controller said emergency vehicles had been dispatched. The pilot can be heard saying, “There was a person walking on the runway.”

According to the audio clip, the pilot told controllers there were 231 people on board and more than 21,000 pounds of fuel.

Data from flight tracking site Flightradar24 showed the plane accelerated to about 146 mph at approximately 11:15 pm local time before aborting takeoff.

“The pilot immediately stopped takeoff procedures” Transport Minister Sean Duffy said:. The person “intentionally” climbed the perimeter fence and ran onto a track, Duffy said. “No one should EVER enter an airport without permission,” he added.

“We are deeply saddened by this incident,” Frontier said.

This story has been updated with additional information.

CNN’s Kareem El Damanhoury, David Williams, Yan Kaner and Sneha Dhandapani contributed to this report.

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