A Delta Air Lines Boeing 757-200 bound for Orlando was forced to make an emergency return and execute a taxiway slide evacuation at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) on Saturday morning after smoke and fumes filled the flight deck and passenger cabin.
Flight DL2204 departed Atlanta around 7:35 a.m. with 199 passengers and six crew members onboard.
Shortly into its climb, passing through 9,000 feet, the flight crew reported smoke in the cockpit, declared an emergency with air traffic control, and donned oxygen masks before turning the aircraft back toward Atlanta.
The jet landed safely approximately 17 minutes after departure. Airport emergency services met the aircraft on the taxiway, inspecting the exterior and finding no initial signs of fire or active smoke. The pilots initially planned to taxi the aircraft back to the gate for a standard deplaning process.
However, conditions inside the aircraft deteriorated rapidly.
Radioing air traffic control with a "change of plans," the pilots reported smoke spreading into the main cabin and ordered an immediate evacuation. The crew shut down both engines before deploying the emergency inflatable slides, allowing all 205 people onboard to evacuate directly onto the taxiway.
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