A Frontier Airlines plane crashed into a pedestrian on the runway at Denver airport, killing him.
Flight number 4345 was scheduled to take off at 10:39 p.m. from Denver, Colorado, to Los Angeles, California. “During departure, the Airbus A321 crashed into a pedestrian on the runway,” US low-cost airline Frontier Airlines said on May 8.
It is unclear whether this person is an airport employee or not. A recording of the conversation between the Denver air traffic control tower and the Frontier Airlines pilot showed the victim walking across the runway. American media reported that the victim was sucked into the plane’s engine and died.
Frontier Airlines aircraft at San Francisco International Airport, California, USA in December 2025. Image: AFP
Denver airport management said the engine caught fire and the fire was extinguished by the Denver Fire Department.
“Smoke appeared in the cabin and the pilots had to cancel the takeoff. Passengers were safely evacuated using the slide,” according to Frontier Airlines. The plane was carrying 224 passengers and a crew of 7. At least one person was injured during the evacuation.
Data from flight tracking platform Flightradar24 shows that the Frontier Airlines plane was accelerating, at a speed of about 230 km/h, then aborted takeoff. Passengers are taken back to the station by bus.
The airport reported the incident to the US National Transportation Safety Board. Runway 17L will be closed until authorities complete the investigation.