US investigates Delta over plane stuck on tarmac in extreme heat

A plane, with passengers on board, which sat on the tarmac for at least three hours in extreme heat, is facing an investigation. 

The US Department of Transportation is investigating Delta Air Lines over reports the passengers were forced to remain on the plane during the extreme conditions. 

For at least three hours the idle plane sat on the tarmac at the Las Vegas airport in temperatures as high as 111F (44C). 

Multiple passengers were seen by medical first responders and two people went to a local hospital. 

Delta says it has offered compensation and apologised to affected passengers. 

“I want to know how it was possible for passengers to be left in triple-digit heat onboard an aircraft for that long,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told Reuters on Thursday.

He called the situation “infuriating” and “shocking”.

“Even under normal temperatures a tarmac delay is not supposed to go that long and we have rules about that, which we are actively enforcing and this is being investigated right now,” he continued, adding that airlines are required to maintain comfortable cabin temperatures.