Last night a Frontier Airlines flight hit somebody crossing the runway as it was on its way to take off from Denver. You can listen to air traffic control and operations communications as the pilot relayed what happened and emergency responders dispatched.
It appears that the person had breached a perimeter fence near the site of the accident. Here’s the damage to the plane’s engines from the ingestion.
The extent of damage to Frontier Flight 4345's right engine. https://t.co/6SX5Mx9D1w pic.twitter.com/heZC5RaS0v
— Turbine Traveller (@Turbinetraveler) May 9, 2026
The plane’s engine caught fire. Fire trucks responded to the scene. Passengers were evacuated from the aircraft. You can see them exiting down the slide. Many bring their carry-on bags with them.
🚨#BREAKING: Watch as a Frontier Airlines aircraft forced to make an emergency after a pedestrian on the runway was struck and sucked into one of the jet’s engines⁰⁰ 📌#Denver | #Colorado
Watch as horrifying footage from earlier this morning shows the moment Frontier Flight… pic.twitter.com/jvaWjzvMey
— R A W S A L E R T S (@rawsalerts) May 9, 2026
The person is confirmed dead. That should have been obvious but wasn’t official yet when I wrote earlier. They were on airport grounds for about two minutes before being hit. The perimeter fence remains intact. We don’t yet know how they bypassed it.
Initial reporting noted one minor injury. In fact, 12 passengers reported minor injuries, and 5 were transported to hospitals.
This is when those PAX who leave with carryons need to be fined $10,000 per bag, banned from flying any aircraft for 2 years. There was an injury during the evac . Did that carry on cause it?
Lock the overhead bins in an emergency.
And by “dead,” we really mean “pureed.”
Taking my bag. Sorry. Get over it.
I always have my wallet and passport in a zippered pocket along with my phone on takeoff and landing for this very reason.
In a case like this, or like the accident when the plane struck a firetruck. How long did the passengers have to wait to receive their personal belongings? I am a professional photographer. My camera equipment is carry-on. If I leave it, will I get it back before my rebooked flight? Probably not. Unless there is heavy smoke or any other indication that it is a life-or-death situation, my carry-on is riding down the slide with me.
My bet is that we eventually see increasing restrictions on carry-ons for exactly this reason.
Taking your luggage in an emergency evacuation people should be identified and severely fined along with Frontier Flight Attendants for allowing it which goes directly against FAA guidelines. Smoke and fire is a danger to passengers.
I guess there is a difference between catching a flight and hailing a cab in Denver.
The consequences are well, shall we say, different.
@Matthew – I still believe that will slow down evacuations as the same morons spend even more time yanking on the bins, frustrated that they won’t open
There’s a burning engine with a full tank of fuel it’s very much a life or death situation
@tomri, injuries can occur even without bags. The MD-11 was tested in Long Beach, California to see if it could be evacuated in 90 seconds using half of the exits. One elderly woman, working for a little pay, slid down head first and became paralyzed after breaking her neck.
It’s unclear to me what the threat level was when the slides were open. Looks like the FA’s were not pushing the passengers, yelling “jump, jump, jump now”.
The solution is to announce during the safety announcement that bags are to be left on the plane and that a $10,000 payment will be made to all passengers who slide down without any bags, in addition to any claims for lost cabin baggage. That should be an incentive to leave bags behind. The way it is now, airlines are extremely stingy about losses in cabin baggage, which is why people take them. I would gladly accept $10,000 plus the cost of lost cabin baggage items! Evacuations are so rare that $10,000 would increase the cost of an airplane ticket by about 2 cents or less.
@Gary – Once people realize – by announcing it in advance on every flight – that the overheads are absolutely inaccessible then these selfish idiots will stop trying. Meanwhile they should be on a worldwide no-fly list for at least a decade.
Safety first. When a particularly ambitious pedestrian decides to audition for “America’s Got Turbine” by hopping a perimiter fence at the Denver International Airport (DEN), only to end up as the world’s worst in-flight snack in the engine of a Frontier Airlines Airbus A321neo during takeoff of flight 4345, chaos ensues: an aircraft fire, an emergency evacuation, and the tarmac decorated with arms, legs, and what we can only describe as very unfortunate confetti. At this point, is it really the responsibility of the Frontier flight attendants to announce, “Ladies and gentlemen, please leave your luggage behind as you immediately exit our burning aircraft using any available evacuation slide AND, try not to trip over the human remains like arms and legs that are scattered on the runway. Thank you for flying Frontier!”
Overhead bins should have an auto lock feature during take off and landing. People who take their personal belongings during an evacuation should be fined $25,000 and banned from flying for 5 years with the option to appeal after 3 years. People who take their bags in an emergency as scum.
Something has to be done. Randy and his cameras could be the reason somebody gets hurt or killed..maybe even him. Flight attendants have enough issues during an emergency to be taking carryons from passengers who think more about themselves (Randy) than the other 200+ souls on board. LOCK THE BINS which will unlock with the seatbelt sign OFF OR in case of electrical failure. I keep my passport and wallet on my person.
If a person brings their bag(s) and then that person damages a slide exiting, rendering the slide unusable, that puts every person still on the planes life even further in danger. An egress down a slide is a life or death situation! “Getting used to it” as in perishing in an airplane as well as no amount of camera gear is worth my life. No matter what these incredibly selfish and immature individuals believe.
The problem won’t be solved until they address the problem of leaving it is asking for the expensive stuff to disappear with no accountability. You will never solve a problem where there’s a huge economic force pushing in the opposite direction.
Proposals to “lock the bins” are nonsense. Threats to fine passengers who take their bags with them in an evacuation will be ignored. The only effective solution to this problem is prohibiting carry-on bags in the cabin and strictly limiting what constitutes a “single under-seat item.”
Banning carry-ons will also speed up airport security lines. Banning carry-ons will make boarding more civilized by eliminating the fight for line position and overhead-bin space. Finally, banning carry-ons will make deplaning faster and safer.
Might I suggest advance shipping such equipment via insured third-party services?
I’ll leave whatever is in the overhead bag but I’m bringing my briefcase style laptop bag. It’s at my feet already; easy to grab, takes no time; has no sharp edges or anything to damage the slide, and would be extremely inconvenient if not downright costly to do without for days or weeks or have it destroyed in a fire or prevention scenario. I’ll still be out of the plane faster than others. Deal with it.
Safety first. I know, every second counts in a burning aircraft. After an aircraft incident, do you want to be seated in the non-smoking, smoking, or burnt beyond recognition section? Extinguishing an incipient fire in a locked overhead cabin bin is more difficult without tools to force entry. I know aircraft cabin fires demand immediate, decisive action by crew and passengers. As a firefighter/paramedic, locked storage bins prevent me from quickly using a Halon 1211 extinguisher at the base of the fire, putting passenger safety at serious risk.
Here is how to put out a Lithium Battery Fire in the Cabin or in the Cockpit when flying on an Airbus aircraft:
https://safetyfirst.airbus.com/lithium-battery-fire-in-the-cabin-or-in-the-cockpit/
On the other hand, I was on a recent trip where my laptop failed and had to do everything on my phone for several days. While annoying (and why aren’t screen/keyboard docks for smartphones not a thing?), it was surprisingly workable.
If I am involved in an emergency evacuation and a person stops for any length of time to take a bag, I am going to do my best to hurt them as much as I can.
@randy. Hope your camera fits in your casket then when the flames burn.
@Denver Refugee – Why is something that will clearly work nonsense? Please, elaborate.
@Gary – I like the cover picture of the mutant kid with 3 legs btw. No AI, eh?
@Ken A — “Safety first. Always.” Anatoly Dyatlov.
1. No airline is going to spend the money (and FAA approval process) to outfit locks on overhead bins.
2. Risk of lithium-battery fires (see @Ken A above)
3. Moving carry-ons to checked baggage fixes other problems with security screening, boarding and deplaning.
4. Moving carry-ons to checked baggage also offers airlines an additional $50/bag revenue stream.
@Denver Refugee — I love how this is your ‘hill that you’d die on.’ For me, it’s an EU261-equivalent in the US.
To All ….
Please stop referring to this individual as a “pedestrian” as that implies they had a legal right to be on the runway. (S)He was a TRESPASSER plain and simple!! They had no legal right to be there and if by some miracle they had survived this they would have been arrested for trespassing!
Picard
@Jean luc Picard — Make it so?
I support federal subsidies for Frontier so its passengers can keep flying Frontier.
Passengers carry more than just their underwear and toothbrush in their bags. Let’s consider they might also have life saving medications and equipment, for example. Or all sorts of irreplaceable or valuable items. I can understand why they want to exit the plane with all of their bags. I’ve never seen/read any stories about what happens after an evacuation. Does it take hours or days to have your items returned to you?
To those in the comments who insist on taking their carry on bag with them should an emergency evacuation occur, I salute your moronic selfishness and willingness to risk others lives. Your stupid bag(s) could impede an evacuation in an already smoke/flame panic filled situation. That’s ok, I’ll stomp over your injured body and pile of stuff as I make my way out and help others do the same because our collective lives are worth more than a damn carryon bag.
How about if you want to take your bag, wait in you seat until people who followed the rules get off.
@TJ Skyy — To those brave vigilantes who insist on justice through violence, I salute your ability to focus on performative outrage and senseless brutality during what is often a chaotic situation… Good sir, may you be treated the way you say you’ll treat others! *stomp stomp stomp stomp stomp*
My dog in her carrier is my personal item when I travel, and is therefore at my feet. That’s the ONLY additional item that should be allowed down the emergency slide.
The locking bins idea is never going to happen. First, it would cost too much. Second, if they were installed and had a malfunction, you might not get the bins open on arrival. Third, if they had a malfunction and couldn’t be fixed soon, would the FAA allow an MEL to dispatch the plane with inoperable bin locks……