2 workers killed, 1 injured in explosion at Delta Air Lines workshop: NPR

ATLANTA – A tire explosion in a Delta Air Lines maintenance hangar near Atlanta airport killed two workers and seriously injured another on Tuesday.

Delta said the explosion occurred while wheel components were being disassembled for maintenance at a wheel and brake shop. The parts were not attached to an aircraft at the time, the airline said.

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration said it had launched an investigation. Delta said it was cooperating with authorities but the cause of the explosion was not yet known.

Several fire departments and Atlanta police officers responded to the maintenance hangar near Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport shortly after 5 a.m., the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. The airport said flights were not affected, and Delta said maintenance operations were also unaffected.

“The Delta family is deeply saddened by the loss of two team members and the injury of another following an incident this morning at the Atlanta Technical Operations Maintenance facility,” Delta said in a statement. “We have pledged our full support to family members and colleagues during this incredibly difficult time.”

Delta thanked first responders and medical teams and said the injured worker remained under medical care late Tuesday afternoon.

“We are now working with local authorities and conducting a full investigation to determine what happened,” the Atlanta-based airline said.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it was in contact with Delta but had referred a request for more information about the alleged accident to the airline. Eric Lucero, a spokesman for OSHA, said the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration has launched an investigation.

The facility where the explosion occurred is part of Delta TechOps, which performs maintenance, repair and overhaul for Delta and more than 150 aviation and airline customers around the world.

The president of TechOps, Delta Executive Vice President John Laughter, said in a note to employees that the airline will provide consultants to employees.

“We are all in the same boat and will get through this by supporting each other,” he said.

Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens posted on X to express his condolences to the victims' families.

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, which is trying to organize Delta's 20,000 ground workers, most of whom are non-union, called on the airline and authorities to “quickly launch a thorough investigation to find out how this happened.”