Tragic fatality: Man dies inside jet engine at Salt Lake City airport with 100 passengers

On New Year's Day, Kyler Efinger, 30, breached security at Salt Lake City International Airport, ultimately found dead inside a Delta plane's engine as it awaited takeoff with 100 passengers. Efinger was discovered "partially inside a wing-mounted engine" after an airport store manager reported a disturbance involving him on the secured side of the terminal just before 10 p.m., according to police.

Despite airport police efforts, Efinger, a Park City resident with a Denver-bound boarding pass, managed to access the airfield by going through an emergency exit door.

By 10:10 p.m., just over 15 minutes after breaching security, he was found unconscious inside the engine of a Delta Airbus A220-100, which was undergoing de-icing before its flight to San Francisco, officials reported.

Efinger had approached the plane and "crawled into an aircraft engine that was not running," as stated by the airport.

Salt Lake City police and airport personnel discovered personal items, including shoes and clothing, discarded on one of the airport's runways.

What happened when Efinger was discovered?

Upon this discovery, they contacted FAA air traffic controllers to instruct the pilot of the affected plane to shut down its engines after learning that Kyler Efinger was beneath the aircraft.

First responders extricated Efinger from the engine intake cowling, responsible for directing air to the engine fan section. Despite life-saving efforts, including naloxone administration, he was declared dead at the scene.

Contrary to the initial report that the plane's engines were off, they were, in fact, rotating at the time Efinger was found. Salt Lake City police are now investigating the specific state of engine operation.