Person dead after plane strike at Denver International Airport

A recent tragedy involving Frontier Airlines claimed the life of a person who was struck by a plane during takeoff. 

The individual reportedly leaped across a fence at Denver International Airport in Colorado before the collision. 

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According to airport authorities, the collision sparked an engine fire on the Frontier Airlines aircraft, forcing passengers to evacuate.

The incident involving Flight 4345- an Airbus A321 carrying 224 passengers and 7 crew members-occurred at approximately 11:19 p.m. local time.

Following the impact, pilots reported smoke in the cabin and a brief engine fire. The flight crew immediately aborted the takeoff, and passengers were forced to evacuate the aircraft via emergency slides.

Frontier Airlines said in a statement that Flight 345 was involved in the collision and that “smoke was reported in the cabin and the pilots aborted take-off.” It was not clear whether the smoke was linked to the collision.

The airport spokesperson said 12 passengers suffered minor injuries and five were taken to hospitals. 

A witness, Mr. Athens reported that the plane’s engine exploded during takeoff, filling the cabin with thick smoke that reduced visibility to less than a foot. Video footage captured passengers calmly evacuating the aircraft using the emergency slides. 

Denver International Airport notified the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to launch an investigation. Runway 17L was closed for several hours following the incident but has since been reopened to traffic.