Out Of Service: Delta Air Lines Boeing 737-900ER Engine Issue Forces Immediate Atlanta Return

Published Aug 21, 2026, 11:23 PM EDT Journalist – Aaron is an aviation and travel journalist with 14 years of experience in the travel and tourism industry. His background spans airport operations, aviation infrastructure, and travel consulting, having worked with global organizations across New Zealand, Europe, and North America. Combining industry expertise with firsthand travel experience across more than 52 countries and five continents, Aaron covers airlines, airports, aviation policy, and the wider travel sector. He is based in Canterbury, New Zealand. His work has been published in Simple Flying and featured by MSN, SAM CHUI Aviation & Travel, EIN News, Pakistan Defence, and Climate Depot. A Delta Air LinesBoeing 737-900ER has been forced to return to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) shortly after departing for Raleigh–Durham International Airport (RDU) on Thursday, August 20, after experiencing mechanical issues. The plane arrived safely back at the busy Georgia airport, with passengers being reaccommodated onto another airplane. The flight was carrying a total of 173 passengers, according to CBS News. Delta has confirmed that the issue on the flight was a problem with the airplane's right engine. This has since resulted in the airplane being removed from service until repairs are undertaken, and it is planned to return to service on Saturday morning with a nonstop rotation to Pensacola (PNS). DL1518 Diverted To Atlanta Credit: Shutterstock Looking at flight data, DL1518 was a scheduled service on Thursday, and departed from Atlanta at 7:42 PM, some eight minutes behind the scheduled departure time of 7:34 PM. The flight, which would normally take around 90 minutes, barely had 20 minutes in the air following takeoff before the crew identified the issue with the engine and returned to base. The flight was back at ATL around 8:00 PM. The flight, which was expected to arrive in Raleigh at 9:07 PM, saw all passengers required to deplane at Atlanta before being accommodated onto a replacement aircraft. The new flight, pushed back from the gate at 10:53 PM, arrived in Raleigh at 11:54 PM, some three hours behind the initial expected arrival time. Delta shared the below statement in relation to the diverted flight: "Nothing is more important than the safety of our people and customers. We apologize to our customers for this disruption in their travels." N938DZ: Aircraft Details Credit: Shutterstock The airplane at the center of the recent drama was that of 14.5-year-old N938DZ. This Boeing 737-900ER took its first test flight in March 2012 and was delivered to Indonesian low-cost carrier Lion Air. The aircraft operated for the Indonesian airline up until September 2022, when it was acquired by the SkyTeam carrier to support its short- and medium-haul operations. Today, the plane is configured in a multi-class layout with 12 First Class seats, 24 Delta Comfort+ seats, and 137 Main Cabin (Economy) seats. It is powered by two CFMI CFM56-7B27 engines, and the right engine experienced a malfunction on the trip to Raleigh. Further details for the aircraft are in the table below, as per ch-aviation: Aircraft Registration N938DZ Serial Number (MSN) 37291 Type Boeing 737-9GPER First Flight Date March 6, 2012 Delivery Date Lion Air: March 16, 2012 Delta Air Lines: September 9, 2022 Hex Code AD03C4 During the eventful flight to Raleigh, the plane got no higher than 4,000 feet in altitude, with the pilots quickly noticing the issue and returning to base. The replacement flight was operated by an aircraft bearing registration N939DZ. Aircraft Set To Return To Service On Saturday Credit: Shutterstock N938DZ is expected to return to scheduled service on Saturday, August 22, with the airplane planning to operate as DL2807 to Pensacola, Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) and Charleston Air Force Base-International Airport (CHS). The flight will reattempt Raleigh later Saturday evening as DL1518. Delta operates a total of 163 737-900ERs in three different configurations, as detailed below: Configuration Domestic First Delta Comfort Delta Main Total Seats Total Aircraft In Service Configuration One 20 21 139 180 130 Configuration Two 12 24 137 173 21 Configuration Three 12 Six 162 180 12 The return of DL1518 to Atlanta shortly after takeoff was due to a mechanical issue that saw the loss of power in the right engine. It remains unclear what the cause of the mechanical issue was, and the airline has apologized to passengers for the inconvenience caused. Atlanta remains Delta's busiest hub, with an average of up to 1,000 daily departures to 210 domestic and international destinations, which represents around 1.1 million weekly seats during peak times.