Surveillance video shows trespasser struck, killed by Frontier jet at Denver airport

A surveillance video from Denver International Airport shows a trespasser on Runway 17L moments before a Frontier Airlines jet struck and killed the person, sharpening scrutiny of how someone crossed a fenced perimeter and reached an active runway at a major U.S. airport.

The collision happened shortly after 11:00 p.m. local time on May 8, 2026, as Frontier Airlines Flight 4345, an Airbus A321 bound from Denver to Los Angeles, was taking off with 224 passengers and 7 crew members on board. Airport officials said the person had jumped a perimeter fence and was hit about two minutes later while crossing the runway. The person has not been identified and is not believed to have been an airport employee.

The impact caused a brief engine fire and smoke in the cabin, forcing the takeoff to be aborted. Passengers evacuated onto the runway using emergency slides and were later bused back to the terminal. Officials said 12 people reported minor injuries and 5 were taken to local hospitals. The plane’s radio call captured the urgency of the moment: “We just hit somebody. We have an engine fire.”

Denver International Airport said Runway 17L reopened later that morning after the scene was cleared, and officials said they examined the fence line and found it intact. Still, the video released Sunday has intensified questions about how the trespasser moved from the perimeter to the runway so quickly and whether the existing security system is built to detect and stop a determined intruder before a takeoff is underway.

Denver International Airport CEO Phil Washington called the incident a “horrible and preventable tragedy” as investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board, Federal Aviation Administration, Transportation Security Administration and Denver police began piecing together the sequence of events. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the victim deliberately scaled a perimeter fence and ran onto the runway.

Aviation security expert Jeff Price said airport fencing is meant to slow trespassers and give responders time to react, not to make access impossible. Retired pilot and flight safety officer Randy Klatt noted that Denver International Airport covers 53 square miles, making a rapid stop difficult once an aircraft is already rolling. The episode has turned a deadly runway breach into a broader test of perimeter security, surveillance coverage and whether current safeguards are enough at one of the country’s largest airports.