Yesterday, another American plane had a near-crash landing. A Delta flight going from Minnesota to Toronto had a very difficult landing, and videos from the scene show that the plane ended up on the Toronto Pearson Airport tarmac completely upside down. There were 80 people on board the plane and it looks like they all survived, but more than a dozen have been hospitalized. The photos and videos are harrowing.
Since Donald Trump came into office, the Trump administration has fired hundreds of air traffic controllers and airline safety officials. Elon Musk personally forced out the head of the FAA, and Trump made idiot reality-star Sean Duffy the new Secretary of Transportation. The Trumpers have been trying to root out “woke” and “DEI” from plane safety, and it’s led to a rash of crashes, deaths and catastrophes everywhere in the past month. The worst of which was the horrific and deadly crash over the Potomac last month, which killed 64 people. People are looking at President Biden’s Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a new light, like Pete was the one holding all of this together for four years and it’s all fallen apart with him. Pete posted this on social media:
The flying public needs answers. How many FAA personnel were just fired? What positions? And why?
— Pete Buttigieg (@petebuttigieg.bsky.social) February 17, 2025 at 9:12 AM
Sean Duffy responded by posting this to his official Transportation Secretary account:
Mayor Pete failed for four years to address the air traffic controller shortage and upgrade our outdated, World War II-era air traffic control system. In less than four weeks, we have already begun the process and are engaging the smartest minds in the entire world.
Here’s the truth: the FAA alone has a staggering 45,000 employees. Less than 400 were let go, and they were all probationary, meaning they had been hired less than a year ago. Zero air traffic controllers and critical safety personnel were let go.
Mayor Pete chose to use this amazing department—that is so critical to America’s success—as a slush fund for the green new scam and environmental justice nonsense. Not to mention that over 90% of the workforce under his leadership were working from home – including him. The building was empty!
When we finally get a full accounting of his mismanagement, I look forward to hearing from him.
In the meantime, I will not rest until I return the Department of Transportation and its incredible employees to its mission of efficiency and safety.
This is like when Trump blamed the Potomac crash on Joe Biden and DEI. They’re just going to keep blaming Black people, LGBTQ people, woke, DEI, Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg for all of these crashes which started on their f–king watch. Also: Elon Musk is bringing in the SpaceX team to “fix” the FAA.
A Delta flight carrying ~80 passengers from Minnesota appears to have crash landed at Toronto Pearson Airport. No casualties reported as of this time. Numerous photos and videos have been released showing passengers safely exiting the plane, which flipped upside down. At least 8 people injured.
— MeidasTouch (@meidastouch.com) February 17, 2025 at 3:13 PM
Photos courtesy of Cover Images.
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- Pete Buttigieg at the New York Foreign Press Center, US Department of State at 799 UN Plaza, on highlighting investments in infrastructure, transportation, and international partnerships during Biden-Harris administration before the take over from Trump’s new administration Featuring: Pete Buttigieg Where: New York City, New York, United States When: 13 Dec 2024 Credit: TheNews2/Cover Images
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- United States Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (L to R) listen as US President Donald Trump speaks about a collision involving an American Airlines passenger jet and an Army helicopter during a press briefing at the White House in Washington on January 30, 2025. Credit: Yuri Gripas / Pool via CNP Featuring: JD Vance, Sean Duffy, Pete Hegseth Where: Washington, District of Columbia, United States When: 30 Jan 2025 Credit: POOL via CNP/INSTARimages.com
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- US President Donald Trump gives remarks to the media in the Oval Office of the White House, as he meets with Elon Musk, in Washington DC Featuring: Donald Trump Where: Washington, District of Columbia, United States When: 11 Feb 2025 Credit: Aaron Schwartz/CNP/INSTARimages
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- Elon Musk is seen with his son X, as he gives remarks to the media, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington DC Featuring: Elon Musk, X Where: Washington, District of Columbia, United States When: 11 Feb 2025 Credit: Aaron Schwartz/CNP/INSTARimages
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- United States Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy speaks as US President Donald Trump signs two Executive Orders in the Oval Office at the White House on February 14, 2025 in Washington, D.C. The Executive Orders signed today were on federal funding going to schools and universities related to the coronavirus pandemic as well as energy production. Featuring: Sean Duffy Where: Washington, District of Columbia, United States When: 14 Feb 2025 Credit: POOL via CNP/INSTARimages.com
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- United States Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy speaks as US President Donald Trump signs two Executive Orders in the Oval Office at the White House on February 14, 2025 in Washington, D.C. The Executive Orders signed today were on federal funding going to schools and universities related to the coronavirus pandemic as well as energy production. Featuring: Sean Duffy Where: Washington, District of Columbia, United States When: 14 Feb 2025 Credit: POOL via CNP/INSTARimages.com
This makes me so angry! 😡 Pete did a fantastic job.
Not sure how Pete is to blame when there has been more crashes in 4 weeks than the last 4 years.
The Trump lovers won’t be bright enough to work that out. They are blinded by hate and believe what they are told to believe.
This is how propaganda works. It never has to make sense and propagandists can twist facts into pretzels. Propaganda played a large role in electing Trump in the first place. Unfortunately, propaganda is the only thing they excel at.
There have been more crashes in the last four weeks than in the last 16 years. Decades of defunding public education have come home to roost. Some people will believe anything.
Well he is gay. And we know that means he was a DEI hire and completely unqualified.
The administration’s DEI purge is proving that together we make things better. It seems planes can’t fly without DEI. But these ideologues would rather die than having management look like the demographics of the country.
If I may, @Is that so, I would respectfully amend your comment to say, these ideologues would rather have US die, much better that those, who are not them, should suffer! The little people, dontcha know! They make sure they are safe in their private jets.
Private jets are dependent on the same air traffic controllers as every other plane.
About 15 minutes ago a military plane crashed into San Diego bay close to Shelter Island. The reports say that both pilots were rescued. MAGA fools will probably blame this on Buttigieg also, even if the pilots report mechanical difficulties.
and if the antiquated systems needed to be replaced, why is that only Biden’s & Buttigieg’s fault when the administration prior to Biden was Trump’s and, with decreased air travel during COVID, that would have been a good time to start making upgrades with the least impact to travel?
This is the most incredible spin I’ve ever seen. If anything Duffy is saying is true then where were all these numerous catastrophic crashes during the Biden administration under the aegis of Sect Buttigieg? ETTD – everything trump touches dies!
Incredible indeed. It beats all other spins of which there are many.
I don’t know. But the recent air craft carrier collision also happened under Trump’s watch. Did the Commander in Chief even comment?
It amazes me to no end that the magats believe everything mango and his minions lie about. Pete Buttigieg should be one of the upcoming superstars in the Democratic party and mango’s minions are defaming him to prevent him from emerging as a presidential candidate down the road. Magats will believe every lie with their whole chest even though hell broke lose immediately after mango’s arbitrary cuts and not before. Other countries outside the hellscape that is the USA: please combat false news. Please boycott anything associated with the red states and American oligarchs. Do not capitulate to mango’s demands.
Of course they believe it! These people are fully saturated in the blackest depths of right wing propaganda (and it’s not like the mainstream media isn’t oligarch owned and operated, either). Light does not penetrate. It is a cult, a rigidly enforced death cult.
One of my favorite things to do is wander over to the conservative subreddit after something bad happens, because there’s about a six hour window in which some of them open one of their eyes a crack and timidly suggest that maybe it’s not great that Elon is an unelected illegal immigrant destroying our government and embarassing the office of the president in the Oval Office. But as soon as the official message goes out, that’s it. No more dissent. There is the message and the message is what they believe.
Further: boycotts would be great but I have several liberal friends who can’t even be bothered to find an alternative to Amazon. “Amazon Prime is just so easy” they say. Okay, well you can’t even be bothered to shop locally? And we live in an area with options, so it’s not like we live in Smalltownsville, Nowhere and can’t make decisions. It aggravates me.
They or their families were on those planes. So it doesn’t matter. Until it’s them their not going to care. Until Musk cuts off their Social Security or Medicare their not going to care if others lose theirs. That is where we are in our country right now. And we are all going to have to suffer to get rid of them.
Can I just ask why Musk is in the white house and why every American seems to be fine with that? If there ever was a time to storm a govermental building this would be it because a person that you guys didn’t elect is currently making policies.
Every American isn’t fine with it. There have been people calling their reps and people protesting. You know that if they stormed a building, it wouldn’t be the same as DT letting his people get away with that. And, for all the R’s giving lip service to not killing police officers, it is the Dems who refrain from publicly murdering people.
There were huge protests all over the country yesterday. Main stream media is too cowardly to cover them because the White House will cut off their access if they hurt Trump’s fragile ego. There are also dozens of lawsuits designed to stop Elon Musk and his goons from destroying the government.
Every American is not fine with the unelected president musk. I know there were a lot of protests across the country at Tesla dealerships yesterday.
The media is owned by a couple billionaires who are only showing news in their own interest. Millions have been brainwashed by fauxNews. The media bias is very real. Protests happened all over the country on President’s Day, even in my dark red part of the country, but any local coverage was spammed by bots and national coverage was muted. Social media (meta) is also avoiding actual coverage of real resistance outside inflammatory memes. I am a diehard Democrat and am getting recommendations for mango pages AND am suddenly following pages I have never interacted with, like the hate group banning books all over the country that shall not be named. Google is actively censoring search results.
I don’t think the reality has set in yet for many Americans. That’s why you hear a lot of Democrats still saying “it’s only 4 years”.
That kills me. As though everything will go back to normal. We don’t even know if we’ll ever get to vote again! 🤦♀️
Yeah. Even if we do get to vote, and elect a Democrat in the next election, the damage they’re inflicting will take DECADES to repair.
Guess that your country’s news outlets didn’t cover the No Kings on Presidents Day protests that occurred in major cities across the country yesterday.
https://apnews.com/article/president-donald-trump-protest-c8796556fbf20e796f42167f61c3d942
People in Boston marched to Government Center but no we didn’t “storm the government” because nobody is trying to die. This administration has made it VERY clear about how they will instruct the military to handle protestors that they don’t agree with.
The oligarch owned media has a vested interest in creating the illusion of support for fascism and no support for the opposition. Immediately after the election I felt that the results were… unexpected, shall we say. Google yielded nothing. If you Google it now, it mostly talks about the 2020 election and how Trump’s “win” this year puts his 2020 claims in a new light. You won’t find anything about the subreddit, Something is Wrong 2024, that has talked at length about the various pieces of evidence that the Republican Party did in fact steal the election unless you google that exact phrase, and who would know to google that?
The media is an active part of the fascist takeover.
We aren’t ok.
We are doing what we can against a very unpredictable and violent prone administration.
It’s their dream to enforce marital law. We can’t give them a reason. Even knowing they will find a way to do it somehow.
People are absolutely pissed about this. We know that musk must have something on Trump, otherwise why would he let Musk publicly humiliate him in the Oval Office? Right now the only thing that can save us is the courts, because the Republicans won both houses in the legislature, but I still know lots of people that are calling their representatives every single day.The more moderate conservatives in my social media feeds are getting concerned about cuts to things like the Department of Education, and the plane crashes. The more extreme conservatives are buying the propaganda that this is an “audit “and that musk is saving the government money. I don’t think they know about Elon breaching the Medicare and Social Security systems. It’s like there are two different levels of news and information operating right now.
What Elon has on Trump is that he alone got him elected. The truth will come out and there will be a reckoning. Will his die hard supporters believe they were lied to-no.
@Tiffany:) I’m not on Facebook or Twitter; do people gently question the truth believing morons, ask them where any of the results of the “audits” are available? Does anyone gently press on the people who are developing cracks? I understand that a “yes, and” works as well for people beginning to understand where the party they’ve supported has erred as it does for improv (even though we all want to scream WE TOLD YOU SO).
Not fine with that, no, not fine. I’ve read even MAGAts are not fine.
Yep. I wouldn’t classify my mother as MAGA but she is conservative and even she said to me, “WtF is going on with Elon Musk? Why won’t Congress do anything about this?”
There will be an implosion with Trump at a certain point, because Trump cannot accept someone who still all the spotlight. But for now, unfortunately he is there.
And it’s scaring.
Not going into technical things here, because I don’t have the background, unlike my daughter, an aircraft engineer.
Probationary in this case doesn’t mean “new on the job”, as airtraffic controllers undergo several years of training until they can work on their own, but probationary here would also mean experienced ATCs who moved from LAX to JFK to do another kind of job. And apparently the number of people they actually let go was more than 2000.
So whatever happens is on them, even if there could be other factors at play too, like faulty maintenence or bad weather.
I feel for all the injured passengers and crew, and hope for the best.
And the so-called probationers apparently include maintenance employees for all the equipment related to air traffic control. It’s scary AF!
Here’s another way ‘probationary’ employees are not newbies & clueless. First of all, you have to qualify! You have to meet the basic requirements of the job in terms of education, experience, etc. Second–it depends on the hiring authority under which you were selected.
I am a federal employee with 25 years experience. For my current job, that I got less than a year ago, I was hired under a Direct Hire Authority. Per HR (and I’ve been exchanging emails with them since I got my offer letter nearly a year ago), everybody hired under a DHA has to undergo a year-long probationary period. Everybody. The regs say there are exceptions for people like me–again, I’ve been emailing these folks a long time–but for now, I’m still considered a probationary employee.
Which means I’ve had a knot in my stomach ever since we all started getting emails from HR@OPM (NOTE: federal employees do NOT ordinarily get emails from HR@OPM). I went home from work early on Thursday & had Friday off, so I’ll find out today if I got one of those ‘you’re fire you stupid probationary employee’ emails. Which means I’d lose my retirement. 😐. And, of course, I have to drive to the office to find out.
I’m so sorry @beaniebean. You Federal employees are in the thick of this disaster and feeling all the stress and uncertainty. Thank you for your commitment to our constitution and the health, wellness, and safety of your fellow citizens.
Thank you, @Paleokifaru. I teared up at your response. OK, off to learn my fate.
How awful, fingers crossed for you, @Beanibean.
I don’t even want to start thinking what will happen in the next four years, although it will affect us all, including us here in the EU, but especially in the Global South, what with WHO, USAID, and that guy who wants to bring back polio, while people will die from measles.
JFC they’re making you drive into the office to see if you’re fired or not? Beyond vile. Is there a way you guys can file a civil suit against Musk? What he’s doing is both egregious and unlawful. I know 14 states are filing their own suits over this but Fed workers should be able to bring a separate class action lawsuit against Musk for lost wages and violating civil servant protections.
So sorry you’re dealing with this…
I’m sorry you are going through this. It’s a horrible way to treat staff. US contractual laws, data protection laws (I assume there are such laws) and trade unions don’t seem to be able to do anything to stop the extraordinary situation of a mate of the president and his mates getting access to information that should be private, and just firing people at will.
I guess Duffy has stopped being polite.
🤡
Underrated comment! Anybody seen Elka or Genesis lately?
Lying and scheming is what the Humpty Dumpster administration does. Has Sean Duffy visited one site of these crashes? But he was at Daytona with his trash leader and of course obsessively tweeting about Secretary Pete. And the media will just fall in line. We are screwed.
When he isn’t obsessively blaming everything on Buttigieg, Duffy is very busy tweeting insults at Hillary Clinton. Because that will fix everything.
In addition to our planes falling out of the sky, our trains aren’t doing well either with numerous crashes, derailments, and explosions.
Last week, Duffy took credit for several DOT infrastructure projects, projects that were planned by Buttigieg, approved by Biden, funded by Biden’s infrastructure bill; and frozen 2 weeks ago by Trump
Because that is what keeps their cult happy. Making the libs cry. Your family died in a plane crash? Your pregnant daughter died when a hospital wouldn’t help her? Your Vietnam war veteran father lost his health care? Who cares – they’re being mean to Hillary.
‘Smartest minds in the entire world’
‘Staggering 45,000 employees’
‘Green new scam’
Welp, now we know why Trump hired this windbag full of hot air. Pun intended.
I’m flying out to BC for a long-awaited ski trip this Friday, and for the first time in my life. I’m nervous as f–k about getting on a plane.
I’m flying next week, and my anxiety is mounting every day. Fingers crossed for both of us and everyone who needs to fly!
🤞🙏
I’m flying Saturday and scared about it too.
A gentle reminder of why SpaceX getting involved in federal aviation overhaul is a bad idea https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/jan/16/spacex-starship-test-flight. Duffy is getting cooked on the official SM account for the Department of Transportation. People are pointedly reminding him the crashes happened on his watch; stop blaming Buttegeig and fix the mess. FAA employees have been fired by Trump and Duffy hasn’t challenged that; and that’s because Duffy knows he’ll lose his job if he does.
Duffy is an idiot but man, I do not envy him. All these unqualified chuckleheads signing up to work for an administration that will be historically remembered as the most catastrophic in US history when they could be making far more in the private sector while avoiding any blame for this mess like DAMN. Really makes you wonder what’s in it for them….
I know this administration and the oligarchs who own it don’t care about Americans dying–we’re all just collateral damage on the way to enacting Project 2025. But when the airline CEOs begin to notice a drop in people flying because the public no longer has any confidence in airlines they’ll be knocking down the door of the Oval Office and Trump is gonna be forced to care. Like everything that human wrecking ball does, this is short-sighted, reckless, idiotic, and ultimately self-sabotaging.
I fly internationally regularly but plan on cutting back while these idiots are in charge. And I will now only fly on non American airlines. I know I have no option but to fly out of and into American airports but I won’t risk flying on an American airline. And I know I’m not the only one that feels this way.
I’m a bit of a white knuckle flyer anyway, so now I’ll probably need to be medicated before getting on a plane. Air traffic controllers are unsung heroes IMO and firing any seems like an extra stupid move. Sorry to anyone reading this who is getting ready to board a flight.🥺
Southwest just announced plans to lay off 15% of its workforce, including executives
Oh that’s just great. *sob* Southwest is who I usually fly. I really don’t want to stop all travel for the next four years, but the the thought is gaining traction.
The rhetoric is getting old
Only the ignorant non thinking believe this BS anymore
Meanwhile real people are being hurt because the entire administration is composed of incompetent criminals
Not surprising. I knew they would do this. Anything bad that happens will be blamed on everything mentioned for the next 4 years or more. Anything good that came out of the Biden admin, this admin will take credit for though I don’t know that they will be able to do that because they are burning everything to the ground.
My sister said yesterday that Trump voters will start opening their eyes and seeing that they were conned as bad things continue to happen and I asked, “Are you sure? They are in a cult. That’s blind loyalty no matter what happens.”
Sean Duffy could have every bridge in America destroyed and blame it on Biden’s administration and the MAGA Cult will go along with it because liberal tears or something.
Slipping in to say I truly appreciate the switch to Bluesky for linking SM posts
I second that @Emcee3. I am also avoiding any Twitter posts like the plague, even when I am dying to see the content. I will NOT support the boer maroon in ANY way, if I can help it. That person is a hideously hateful loon, and I will not knowingly have anything to do with him. Bring on the alternatives!
I hate Trump, Musk, Duffy et al as much as the next guy but roping the Toronto crash into the current FAA mess is nonsensical. Canada is not yet the 51st state so the landing of the plane was entirely within the jurisdiction of CANADIAN air traffic control. I understand that there were high winds at the time of the landing and it wasn’t a particularly big plane so I can see why maybe it flipped. There are legit issues with the FAA but trying to link the Toronto crash to those issues just undermines your position.
Yeah, this crash seems to be weather related (high winds, ice, and snow conditions).
I loathe these people more than is healthy but this was just an unfortunate accident. And it could have been much worse.
Yeah, we got twenty-two centimetresof snow at Pearson airport over the weekend due to the two back-to-back storms. Plus there was high winds. Current speculation (as the investigation has just started, so this is not facts) is that the wind was just a bit too much for the plane’s ability to land safely. Plus the windchill was between -19 and -23 degrees C (sorry, don’t know Farenheit) and wind gusts were up to 44 km/h (again, don’t know miles).
Yeah agreed. My bro and SIL are in Canada for Feb vaca and yesterday they got involved in a terrible car pile-up on the highway while making their way to the Adirondacks. They are ok but their car is totaled so they had to sleep in a shelter last night with their two dogs that were along for the trip. 🙁 I guess the weather has been really treacherous there the past couple of days….
I don’t think that this particular plane crash can be entirely placed on the poor decisions made by the Trump administration but their attempt to place all blame of the accidents that have happened here in the U.S. on DEI hires or Biden and Pete is a sign of the many things wrong with their administration and those who follow them with blind loyalty. He accused Pete of ignoring shortages in aviation but then continued by referring to the recent Trump firings in the same department, which decreases the already existing shortages. I think we keep skipping over the thing that they want us to forget, which is that Biden was only in office for four years, why didn’t they deal with the issues that they say have been around due to Democratic policies that go back as far as Obama? Why weren’t they addressing these problems during Trumps first term?
Typical trashy MAGAs blaming anyone But themselves. I do agree that the delta accident is related to weather. But Musk/Trump administration firing of FAA workers doesn’t help, many already stressed out and prob have low morale due these reductions. I won’t be surprised if they would cut more and I won’t be surprised if they try to outsource for cheaper costs. In one of Fortune’s article, Musk was quoted that he wanted to delete entire agencies .. headcount could be brought back but at a much lower baseline.
You can read between the lines what that means.
Just a reminder the new guy is a former Real World star
You all are being too generous calling this idiot a star, and his equally idiotic wife kept auditioning to be on the The View.
Where’s Puck when you need him🤣
The irony…Sean Duffy’s wife is Rachel Campos. Yes, the same Rachel on the San Francisco season with Puck and, more sadly, Pedro. If you read up on her since RW, she is just as bad, or worse, than her husband in her views.
She allegedly made out/slept/dated him, but I didn’t have cable back then, so I only know about them by what their fellow cast mates have said. They have a s**t ton of kids, so they’re the phony religious types.
When I read this headline pre-coffee, I thought that Sean Duffy was blaming Pete Hegseth.
Oh the irony of him blaming DEI when his Latino children would be considered in the same category.