Key Points
— A Delta Airlines Airbus A330-323 suffered a left-engine explosion seconds after takeoff from São Paulo’s Guarulhos International Airport on Sunday night, forcing a mayday call and emergency return
— Charred debris fell beside the runway and ignited a fire, which airport firefighters extinguished within minutes — no injuries were reported among passengers or crew
— Flight DL104, bound for Atlanta, was airborne for approximately nine minutes before landing safely — Delta cancelled the flight and cited mechanical issues
A Delta Guarulhos emergency unfolded on Sunday night after the left engine of an Atlanta-bound Airbus A330 exploded seconds after takeoff, showering charred fragments beside the runway and triggering a fire. The Rio Times, the Latin American financial news outlet, reports that the crew declared a mayday and returned the aircraft safely to São Paulo‘s international airport, with no injuries reported among those on board.
Flight DL104 departed at 11:49 p.m. local time, bound for Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport with a scheduled arrival at 7:40 a.m. local time. The explosion occurred within seconds of the aircraft leaving the ground, according to witnesses and flight data from tracking platform Flightradar24.
What Happened in the Delta Guarulhos Emergency
The aircraft — an Airbus A330-323, one of the widebody jets Delta operates on its South America routes — was climbing out of Guarulhos when the left engine failed catastrophically. Burnt fragments ejected from the engine fell onto the area adjacent to the runway, starting a ground-level fire.
The airport’s control tower identified the incident and alerted the flight crew. The pilot declared a mayday — the highest-level distress call in aviation — and turned back immediately. According to Flightradar24 data, the aircraft remained airborne for approximately nine minutes before touching down safely.
Airport fire crews reached the ground-level blaze quickly and brought it under control within minutes. Passengers deplaned without incident. Delta subsequently cancelled the flight, issuing a statement on its website that attributed the cancellation to “mechanical issues” and apologized for the disruption.
A Pattern of Engine Incidents
The Guarulhos incident adds to a series of engine-related emergencies involving Delta aircraft in recent months. In February 2026, a Delta Boeing 737-900 lost its left engine during takeoff from Savannah, Georgia, igniting a grass fire along the taxiway, and in July 2025 a Delta Boeing 767-400 suffered an engine fire after takeoff from Los Angeles — both requiring emergency returns with no injuries.
Neither Delta nor the administration of Brazil’s busiest airport had detailed the cause of the engine failure as of the latest update. Guarulhos handles more than 40 million passengers annually and serves as Delta’s primary gateway to South America, with two daily flights on the Atlanta–São Paulo route. An investigation into the mechanical failure is expected from Brazil’s aviation authority CENIPA and potentially the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board.