On March 5, 2015, the McDonnell Douglas MD-88 aircraft veered off the runway shortly after landing at LaGuardia Airport in New York City.

[9] The final report by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found the probable cause of the accident was the pilot's "inability to maintain directional control of the airplane due to his application of excessive reverse thrust, which degraded the effectiveness of the rudder in controlling the airplane's heading.

"[10]: 76 The aircraft involved was a McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registered as N909DL, with serial number 49540, manufactured in July 1987, and delivered new to Delta on December 30, 1987.

[10]: 13  The aircraft's last major maintenance check was on September 22, 2014, in Jacksonville, Florida and included, among other things, tests of the autobrake, anti-skid and auto-spoiler systems.

[1] In command was 56-year-old Captain Theodore W. Lauer, a former United States Air Force (1980–1989) pilot who had joined Delta in August 1989.

[13][14] LaGuardia Airport was under falling snow and freezing fog conditions at the time of arrival, with the captain reportedly telling passengers that weather problems could cause a delay.

Statements by the pilots to the NTSB after the crash revealed that the runway appeared all white (covered with snow) when the airplane descended out of the overcast, seconds before landing.

[17] Runway 13/31 was closed until 10:30 am the next morning as emergency services cleared the accident site and the aircraft was removed into a hangar.

The NTSB investigation found that runway snow clearing had most recently taken place about 20–25 minutes prior to the accident.

[1] According to the NTSB investigation update issued on April 2, 2015, investigators found that Delta's MD-88 pilot operational materials (manuals) contained guidance recommending that pilots limit the reverse thrust engine pressure ratio (EPR) to 1.3 when landing on "contaminated" runways, i.e., runways with increased levels of risk related to deceleration and directional control.

The investigation has found that the EPR was at 1.9 at six seconds after touchdown, however, based on readout from the flight data recorder.

[15] According to a March 9, 2015 article in The Wall Street Journal, "Pilots and air-safety experts have long known that when the MD-88s reversers are deployed, its rudder, or large vertical tail panel intended to help turn the nose, sometimes may not be powerful enough to control left or right deviations from the center of runways.

"[10]: 76 On February 28, 2018, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey filed a lawsuit against Delta and Captain Lauer, citing negligence was involved in the accident.