White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt blasted Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) on Tuesday after he blamed President Donald Trump’s government cuts for the Delta Air Lines crash-landing in Toronto earlier this week.
Schumer posted on X on Monday shortly after the crash, writing, “Trump’s doing massive layoffs at the FAA—including safety specialists—and making our skies less and less safe.” In a follow-up post, Schumer added, “To those asking whether it matters that the plane’s destination was in Canada: The flight took off from Minneapolis. The FAA was still responsible for inspecting the aviation equipment, and Trump just let go of FAA safety specialists.”
Leavitt responded to Schumer’s criticism of the Trump administration, telling Fox News, “It’s incredibly irresponsible for Chuck Schumer to say such a thing when the investigation is still underway.” She then pointed out that the “crash unfortunately took place in Canadian airspace with Canadian air traffic controllers overseeing it.” According to Leavitt, no air traffic controllers have been fired during Trump’s purge of the FAA. She added that the Trump administration “has put great emphasis on hiring the best and the brightest air-traffic controllers who want to be part of the FAA.”
The response from the White House Press Secretary prompted another social media post from Schumer, who wrote, “Here are the facts: This flight took off from Minneapolis. The FAA was still responsible for inspecting the aviation equipment, and Trump just fired FAA safety specialists.” He added, “The Trump administration turns away from the facts, and it’s hurting Americans. Democrats are fighting to protect the flying public.”
The Professional Aviation Safety Specialists union, which represents FAA and Department of Defense employees, said earlier this week that the Trump administration fired hundreds of FAA probationary workers, including systems specialists, safety inspectors, and maintenance mechanics. The reported firings came after Trump ordered a review of all FAA “critical safety positions” to “ensure top-notch air safety and efficiency.”
Authorities have not determined the cause of the crash-landing in Toronto as Canadian and U.S. officials team up on the investigation. Video footage showed the regional jet hit the runway at an odd angle before its right main landing gear snapped off. The plane’s right wing smashed into the ground and the aircraft turned upside down and burst into flames. All 80 people on board, including 76 passengers and four crew members, survived, with 21 requiring medical attention.
Authorities will look into factors that could have led to the crash, including the weather and the pilots’ experience and training. A retired Delta captain told The Daily Wire on Tuesday that he does “not believe that weather was a factor.”
“Most likely from what I gathered yesterday at the time of the incident, the wind was approximately 40 degrees from center, so the crosswind component was around 20 knots and the headwind was around 23,” he said, adding, “Any pilot should be able to handle that. It’s no big deal.”
Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian told “CBS Mornings” on Wednesday that the crew on Delta’s Endeavor Air CRJ-900 was experienced, adding, “All these pilots train for these conditions.” Bastian also praised the crew for quickly evacuating everyone on the plane.
