A simple mistake led to a $70,000 to $100,000 penalty for U.S.-based Delta Airline after a flight attendant accidentally deployed an emergency slide on a parked aircraft in Seattle.
As reported byAviation A2Z,the strange incident happened when a 26-year-old flight attendant, an experienced crew member, accidentally deployed an emergency evacuation slide on an Airbus A220 aircraft at Pittsburgh airport, causing disruption and a massive penalty.
This mishap occurred when the Airbus A220 was scheduled to fly from Pittsburgh to Salt Lake City on Saturday, October 25, 2025.
Moreover, the incident occurred just as the aircraft was preparing to push back from the gate, resulting in a delayed flight as the inflated slide blocked the jet bridge and prevented normal operations.
According to several reports, flight attendants had already armed the doors for departure when a crew member manning the left door lifted the handle, mistakenly causing the side deployment.
As reported by the crew, such incidents are known as Inadvertent Slide Deployments ISDs and Airbus has previously estimated that up to three ISDs occurred globally each day at one point.
ISDs are more common at the end of flights, when flight attendants disarm doors for arrival.
Usually, this sort of incident occurs when the doors are closed, and any movement of the handle triggers the emergency power-assist system, which forces the door to open and deploys the inflatable side.
While the airline experts inform us that the system, once triggered, cannot be stopped.
Following the incident, the airline further informs that the deployed slide was at the forward left-hand door—the same door that typically connected to the jet bridge.
As a result of the incident, all the passengers were temporarily trapped on board until engineers detached the inflated slide and reattached the jet bridge.
In addition, authorities stated that the guilty flight attendant was flustered and publicly apologized to passengers after the incident.
Furthermore, the airline states that emergency evacuation slides are expensive to replace or repair, and that the estimated cost of assembling a new slide for an aircraft like the Airbus A220 is between $50,000 and $70,000.