Delta Plane's Wing Flap Crash-Lands in North Carolina Driveway

Sarah Johnson
July 3, 2025
Brief
Delta Air Lines flight loses wing flap, landing in a North Carolina driveway. No injuries reported, FAA investigates.
In a bizarre twist of fate, a Delta Air Lines Boeing 737-900ER, operating as Flight 3247, made an unscheduled delivery to a North Carolina homeowner's driveway early Wednesday morning, July 2, 2025. A piece of the plane's left wing flap decided to take a solo flight, detaching mid-air and landing with a thud in a Raleigh neighborhood. The flight, carrying 109 passengers and six crew members from Atlanta to Raleigh-Durham, touched down safely at 1:15 a.m. despite the unexpected shedding.
Delta confirmed the incident, emphasizing that safety remains their top priority. "We’re fully cooperating with retrieval efforts and investigations," a spokesperson told WTFNewsRoom, likely while double-checking their own wing flaps. The Federal Aviation Administration is now digging into what caused this high-flying fumble, which miraculously caused no injuries or property damage, according to Raleigh police.
The flight faced delays due to thunderstorms, departing Atlanta 10 minutes late at 11:06 p.m. on Tuesday. Susan Reed, a local worker near the crash site, summed it up best: "In a dense neighborhood like this, we dodged a bullet—or rather, a wing flap." Here’s hoping this is the last time a plane part decides to play driveway decoration.
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Editor's Comments
Talk about airmail nobody ordered! Delta’s wing flap picking a Raleigh driveway for its grand exit is like a plane part auditioning for a Hollywood crash scene. Maybe it just wanted a break from the turbulence—or a closer look at Southern hospitality. Either way, this flap’s solo trip reminds us: even planes can have a bad wing day.
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