An Australia-bound Delta flight returned to Los Angeles shortly after takeoff Saturday night when smoke was detected in the plane’s galley.
Delta Air Lines Flight DL43 had left Los Angeles International Airport for Sydney, but turned around for a diverted landing shortly after takeoff. The plane safely landed less than an hour after it took off, according to FlightAware.
The airline said in a statement Sunday that nothing was more important to the company than the safety of its passengers.
“That’s why the flight crew followed established procedures to return to Los Angeles (LAX) after smoke was detected in the galley,” Delta said. “We apologize to our customers for the delay in their travels.”
The Federal Aviation Administration said it would investigate the matter.
This is the latest in a recent string of aviation incidents that has made many travelers anxious about boarding planes. Last week, a Delta flight flipped upside down while landing at a Toronto airport and burst into flames.
Twenty-one people were injured in that accident. Two people have since filed lawsuits against Delta over the incident.
Delta offered all 76 passengers of the flight $30,000 per person and a spokesperson said that the monetary gift “has no strings attached and does not affect rights.”
A military helicopter collided midair with an American Airlines passenger jet over Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C., last month. All 64 people aboard the passenger flight and all three aboard the Black Hawk were killed.
The National Transportation Safety Board is the lead agency investigating the cause of the crash.
And roughly a week after that collision, a medical jet crashed near an outdoor mall in Philadelphia. All six people aboard the air ambulance were killed and a person inside a car was also killed.
The accident caused another 24 injuries to people on the ground.