Powerful lightning strikes Delta plane in Atlanta (VIDEO)
A YouTube video has captured the terrifying moment when a Delta plane was struck by a powerful lightning bolt while on a runway in Atlanta.
The incident took place when Delta Air Lines flight 67 was preparing to depart despite stormy conditions from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport to Las Vegas.
The video of the flash was uploaded to YouTube reportedly by Jack Perkins, a passenger from another plane who happened to witness the event. The footage which shows a strong bolt of lightning flashing through the sky and striking the plane has racked up about 900,000 views so far.
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“While filming the line of planes all stacked up during a ground hold in Atlanta on 8/18/15 [August 18], I happened to capture this direct lightning strike on a 737 [Boeing 737-900ER],” wrote Perkins.
According to Delta spokesman Morgan Durrant, at least 111 passengers and six crew members were on board the plane when the lightning struck. No one was injured in the incident.
“Aircraft design allows lightning bolts to be safely redirected,” Durrant told Atlanta AJC newspaper. “Fuselage structure and industrial-grade insulation acts as [a] super-conductive lightning rod that rechannels lightning around and away from customers and crew and out into the ground via the landing gear.”
