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Tragedy struck on New Year's Day when a man identified as Kyler Efinger, 30, was found deceased inside an airplane at the Salt Lake City International Airport, Utah. He had reportedly trespassed an emergency exit door to enter the tarmac and eventually climbed into the engine set up on the wing of the commercial flight.
The flight in question was reportedly on a de-icing pad and was also filled with other passengers. Kyler Efinger reportedly had a ticket and a boarding pass to Denver.
Once first responders pulled the unconscious Kyler off the flight, he was unable to be revived by any immediate life-saving measures.
Kyler Efinger was reportedly traveling to Denver
New Year's Day turned tragic for one passenger at Utah's Salt Lake City International Airport. Park City, Utah resident Kyler Efinger was spotted in the airport bypassing an emergency exit door. According to an initial investigation, the emergency exit granted Efinger access to the airport's outdoor ramp area. The latest Salt Lake City Police report stated:
"As previously released, this investigation started at approximately 9:52 p.m. on Monday, January 1, 2024, when a store manager inside the airport contacted dispatchers with the Airport Control Center."
The report added
"The store manager reported a disturbance involving a passenger on the secured side of the terminal. The nature of the disturbance remains under investigation."
Police reportedly spotted items belonging to Efinger, including clothing, lying on a runway, at around 10 pm. After getting on the Tarmac, Efinger was reportedly spotted at one of the airport's de-icing pads. From there, he partially climbed up, a wing-mounted engine, under a commercial passenger plane. Unfortunately, the engines of the flight were still rotating.
The commercial jet in question was already boarding passengers and 95 were in the Delta 2348 plane. Once the man was spotted, air traffic control instructed the plane to shut down its engines.
Kyler Efinger was found unconscious and extracted from the engine intake cowling by first responders. CPR and naloxone were administered but unfortunately, Efinger was declared deceased at the scene.
The engine intake cowling, from which Kyler Efinger was extracted, directs the airflow into the engine fan. Efinger was found to be a ticketed passenger heading to Denver, Colorado. However, the flight Efinger climbed onto was heading to San Francisco and had to be emptied.
Apart from the cancellation of the affected flight, normal operations of the airport were not affected. All passengers affected were reportedly re-booked to other planes. A Delta Spokesperson was quoted by NBC News as stating:
"As nothing is more important than the safety and security of our customers and people, Delta is fully cooperating with all aviation authority and law enforcement investigations,"
Kyler's Facebook account stated that he was an "Adventure Guide at Park City Teamworks".
The comments on his latest Instagram post, which was posted three days ago, all paid tribute to the deceased Kyler Efinger.
Kyler Efinger's exact cause of death, which is to be determined by a toxicology report, is not yet available. The state medical examiner's office and the Salt Lake City police are working in tandem to determine the exact reason. No additional information will be released prior to the pending autopsy.
