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The US Federal Aviation Administration is looking into a mishap on a Delta
plane that took off from Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.
 
Officials with the FAA say a wing flap fell off a regularly-scheduled flight
from Atlanta to the Raleigh-Durham area on Tuesday night.
 
What we know:
According to the agency, the Atlanta-based airline informed the FAA about the
issue after Flight 3247 landed safely at Raleigh-Durham International.
 
Officials say that after the Boeing 737-900 landed, crews found that the part
was missing.
 
The wing flap reportedly fell into a Raleigh resident's driveway.
 
What they're saying:
A Delta spokesperson sent the following statement to FOX 5 Atlanta: "After the
aircraft landed safely, it was observed that a portion of the left wing's
trailing edge flap was not in place. Delta is fully supporting retrieval
efforts and will cooperate with investigations as nothing is more important
than safety." 
 
Delta also told FOX 5 Atlanta that 109 customers and 6 crew members were on
the flight. The plane departed 10 minutes late due to thunderstorm activity at
11:06 p.m. and landed safely at 1:15 a.m. ET July 2. 
 
Big picture view:
Delta Air Lines, which is based in Atlanta, currently operates a mainline
fleet of almost 1,000 aircraft and is the third-largest commercial airline
fleet in the world. According to AeroTime, it was ranked the 4th safest
airline in the United States (no. 21 globally) for 2025 (based on 2024
statistics). Alaska Airlines, which has 328 planes, was ranked No. 1 and
Hawaiian Airlines (70 planes) was ranked No. 2. American Airlines, which has
981 planes, was ranked No. 3. 
 
The airline is frequently voted one of the world's best airlines, one of
Atlanta's best employers, and a passenger favorite. It has not had a fatal
incident since 2006. 
 
What's next:
Authorities with the FAA are still investigating the situation.

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