No, the Delta Air Lines plane that crashed in Toronto didn’t have an all-women crew


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Without providing any evidence, President Donald Trump blamed diversity in hiring policies for the fatal airplane-helicopter January collision in Washington D.C. Weeks later, some social media users said an all-female crew caused the Feb. 17 Delta Air Lines crash in Toronto that flipped a plane on a runway.

“Delta plane that crashed in Toronto operated by Endeavor Air with all-female flight crew,” a Feb. 19 Instagram post said. The post includes videos and photos of women pilots from Endeavor Air’s social media accounts.

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Delta Air Lines owns Endeavor Air, which operated Flight 4819 that crashed in Toronto. According to a Delta Air statement, the flight’s crew was not all female.

In a Feb. 20 statement about the flight, Delta Air Lines used “he” pronouns when describing the captain and “she” pronouns while describing the first officer. As of Feb. 21, the airline has not identified any of the crew members by name.

The images in the Instagram post came from Endeavor Airlines’s social media — a 2022 TikTok post celebrating Women’s History Month and the airline’s 2022 X post with an all-women crew that said, “Buckle up, ladies and gentlemen, your flight is unmanned today. #girlpower.” Although the airline has promoted its female employees, these posts are not proof that Flight 4819’s crew had no men. Other Endeavor Air TikTok and X posts have included images of men in flight crews.

We rate the claim that the “Delta plane that crashed in Toronto operated by Endeavor Air with all-female flight crew,” False.

Truth-o-meter Ruling

False

IF YOUR TIME IS SHORT

  • In a Feb. 20 statement, Delta Air Lines used "he" pronouns when describing the captain of the flight that crashed in Toronto.

  • As of Feb. 21, Delta Air Lines had not identified any of the crew members.

  • Endeavor Air is owned by Delta Air Lines and operated Flight 4819, which crashed in Toronto. The only evidence social media users pointed to as proof of an all-female crew were Endeavor Air’s social media posts from 2022 with women crew members.

Statement

“Delta plane that crashed in Toronto operated by Endeavor Air with all-female flight crew.”

Context

an Instagram post

Speaker/Target

Statement Date

February 19, 2025
Our Sources

CBS News, Trump criticized DEI and the FAA’s diversity policies after a deadly plan crash. Here’s what we know., Jan. 31, 2025

Delta News Hub, Endeavor Flight 4819, Feb. 20, 2025

Email and phone correspondence, Grant Myatt, spokesperson, Delta Air Lines, Feb 20-21, 2025

TikTok post, March 26, 2022

X post, June 6, 2022

TikTok post, Dec. 30, 2024

X post, March 1, 2024

Translations

Language: en

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