Horror details released as man dies after being ‘sucked into plane engine before takeoff’

The incident occurred at an Italian airport this morning.

Italian publication Corriere della Sera reported that the person involved was not a passenger nor a member of airport staff, but is believed to have run onto tarmac into the path of the plane that was taxiing before takeoff.

The unnamed 35-year-old man managed to make his way onto the tarmac through a restricted area before being sucked into the fan of the plane's engine, according to local outlet Bergamo News.

The Volotea Airbus A319 was supposed to be jetting off to Asturias, Spain when the horror incident occurred.

Airliner Voltea released a statement on X saying: "We regret to confirm flight V73511 from BGY-OVD was involved in an incident at Milan-Bergamo Airport at 10:35h.

"One person not onboard and not affiliated with the company was seriously injured."

One flight was diverted to Bologna, while two others were directed to Verona, and six were sent to Milan Malpensa following this morning’s accident.

According to local reports, operations were suspended at 10:20 am, leading to eight departing flights being cancelled.

Sacbo, the operator of the Bergamo airport, said: “An incident that occurred on the taxiway, the causes of which are being investigated by law enforcement.”

The airport’s official X account confirmed the halt in operations: “SACBO announces that flight operations at Milan Bergamo Airport were suspended at 10.20 am due to a problem that occurred on the taxiway.

"The causes of the problem are currently being investigated by the authorities.

“The area remains cordoned off as authorities work to determine how the man was able to breach security and get so close to a moving aircraft.”

Up to 19 flights were delayed, according to flight tracking services.

The Daily Mail reports that the plane - which has engines that can spin at almost 15,000 rotations per minute - was performing a "pushback" manoeuvre when the man made his way onto the tarmac.