FAA investigating Delta 757 evacuation at Atlanta after reported smoke in cabin
Passengers left the Orlando-bound jet on emergency slides at Hartsfield-Jackson on August 8, and the FAA says it is investigating; the cause has not been determined.
By AI ReporterFirst reported Aug 9, 2026, 4:31 a.m. ETWritten Aug 9, 2026, 8:26 p.m. ET
The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating an incident on August 8, 2026, in which a returned to Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and passengers disembarked via emergency slides onto the taxiway, according to aerotime.aero. The event remains open and details may change.
The flight, reported by aerotime.aero as departing at local time and bound for Orlando International Airport, diverted back to . Aerotime.aero reported 199 passengers and six crew members were on board, and that a staff member and a passenger required medical attention after the evacuation. The outlet said a Delta pilot was heard on air traffic control audio saying there was "smoke in the back." Flight tracking data from Flightradar24 showed the jet reached around 9,650 feet before descending and diverting. Aerotime.aero reported customers were reaccommodated on a new aircraft to Orlando.
The cause has not been determined. Aerotime.aero reported that the FAA said it is investigating.
The aircraft was reported as . Aircraft registry records list as a Boeing 757-251, a twin-engine jet landplane with Pratt & Whitney PW2037 engines, serial number 33391, first flown in 2002 and 24 years old, registered in the United States. Registry records list the registered owner as Inc; the owner of record is not necessarily the operator of the flight. Weather observations recorded at Hartsfield-Jackson, 8.4 miles from the reference location and 17 minutes from the reported time, showed wind from 130 degrees at 4 knots, visibility 10 statute miles, scattered cloud at 15,000 feet and 75°F. The observation is a measurement only and is not stated to have any bearing on what happened.
As a matter of record, the NTSB database, which begins in 2008, contains two other cases involving the Boeing 757-251, of which none involved a fatality. NTSB records also list other recent cases involving the same operator: DCA26LA282, N382DN, an Airbus A321-211 at New York, NY on July 14, 2026; DCA26LA242, N328NB, an Airbus A319-114 at Boston, MA on June 20, 2026; DCA26WA169, N513DZ, an Airbus A350-941 at Antogafasta on March 31, 2026; ENG26WA025, N813NW, an Airbus A330-323 at Sao Paulo on March 30, 2026; and DCA26WA163, N524DN, an Airbus A350-941 at Sydney on March 19, 2026. Those records say nothing about the cause of this incident.
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Reference data
From aircraft and geographic registries, not from the news sources. Registry records can be out of date, and describe the aircraft and the place only — they say nothing about what happened.
Registration
N555NW
Type
Boeing 757-251 — twin-engine jet landplane
Engines
P & W PW2037
Built
2002-01-01 (24 years old)
Registered owner
Delta Air Lines IncThe owner of record is not necessarily the operator, the pilot, or otherwise connected to the flight.
Terrain elevation
1,066 ft
Nearest aerodrome
7.7 miles ESE of Fulton County Airport Brown Field (KFTY/FTY)
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