Air Canada Runway Excursion Raises Evacuation Questions

Air Canada Flight AC774 landed at Montréal-Trudeau International Airport and then left the paved surface while exiting the runway, stopping in the grass with 162 people aboard.

No injuries were reported. The aircraft’s path and the roughly three hours passengers remained on board are now separate parts of the safety review.

The flight landed before leaving the pavement

AC774 arrived from Los Angeles on July 9, 2026, carrying 156 passengers and six crew members.

Air Canada said the Boeing 737 MAX landed normally, then sustained a runway excursion and traveled through grass while exiting the main runway.

Photographs showed the aircraft upright near the paved movement area.

The term runway excursion can cover an aircraft that overruns or veers from a runway or adjacent exit. It does not identify pilot error, braking failure, pavement condition, weather or another cause.

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada deployed investigators to gather information and assess the occurrence.

The aircraft was later moved for inspection. A temporary runway closure contributed to delays before operations returned toward normal.

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Investigators will reconstruct the ground path

The TSB will examine flight-data records, cockpit communications, air-traffic-control instructions, weather, braking reports and physical marks left on pavement and soil.

A key point is where the aircraft departed the paved surface.

If it left while completing the landing roll, investigators will focus on directional control, braking and runway conditions. If it departed during a turn onto a taxiway, steering geometry, turn speed and pavement edges become more important.

Early public descriptions alternated between runway and taxiway.

The airline described a normal landing followed by an excursion while exiting the main runway. Recorder data and surveyed tire tracks should establish the exact sequence.

Investigators will also review the approach.

An unstable or long landing can increase excursion risk, but no official evidence has been released showing that AC774 approached or touched down outside normal limits.

Three hours on board creates a second timeline

Passengers were not immediately evacuated using emergency slides.

Emergency teams secured the aircraft and arranged a controlled transfer by buses. Air Canada later confirmed that everyone had reached the terminal.

A delay of roughly three hours can feel alarming when passengers do not know whether fuel, brakes, landing gear or the ground beneath the aircraft is stable.

Immediate evacuation is not automatically safer.

Slides can cause fractures and other injuries, particularly when passengers carry bags, jump incorrectly or land on uneven ground. If there is no active fire, smoke entering the cabin or immediate structural danger, commanders may choose stairs or another controlled exit.

The review should still examine whether the risk assessment, passenger communication and deplaning resources moved quickly enough.

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Soft ground changes the recovery plan

An aircraft that stops in grass may sink or shift under its own weight.

Rescue personnel must evaluate landing gear, fuel leaks, engine clearance and soil strength before bringing stairs, buses or towing equipment close.

The safest passenger exit may not be the nearest door.

Ground crews need a stable route that avoids engines, damaged gear, soft soil and emergency vehicles. They also need to preserve evidence for investigators.

Recovery then becomes an engineering operation.

Moving a narrow-body jet from soft ground without causing additional damage can require mats, specialized tow equipment and decisions about fuel, baggage and weight.

Those steps can extend the closure even when every person on board is safe.

One aircraft affected the wider airport

Montréal-Trudeau is Air Canada’s major eastern hub, where a runway or taxiway restriction can disrupt connecting banks of arrivals and departures.

The temporary closure produced delays of up to about an hour, while weather added complexity in the region.

A single blocked movement area can force controllers to resequence traffic, hold departures, change taxi routes or keep arriving aircraft in the air longer.

The airport’s official flight portal advised travelers to check current schedules as operations normalized.

The operational cost extends beyond the damaged aircraft.

Crews can exceed duty limits, passengers can miss connections and gates may remain occupied when arriving flights cannot reach the terminal on schedule.

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The MAX label does not identify the cause

The aircraft was a Boeing 737 MAX, but the model name alone provides no explanation for a ground excursion.

Investigators will work from the specific airplane’s brakes, tires, steering, maintenance history and recorded crew inputs. They will also examine airport surfaces and environmental conditions.

Public attention often moves immediately to aircraft type.

Safety investigations move in the opposite direction, narrowing from exact event data before deciding whether a broader fleet issue exists.

No evidence released so far identifies a fleet-wide defect.

The TSB review covers the response as well as the stop

The Transportation Safety Board can issue findings on operational decisions before, during and after the aircraft left the pavement.

That includes the landing and exit sequence, airport emergency response and the time required to move passengers.

The absence of injuries is a successful outcome.

It does not remove the opportunity to identify delays or procedural weaknesses before a future excursion involves fire, damaged landing gear or a less stable stopping point.

TL;DR

• AC774 left the paved surface after landing in Montreal.

• All 156 passengers and six crew members were safely deplaned.

• The TSB deployed investigators.

• Passengers remained aboard for roughly three hours.

• The review will examine both the excursion and ground response.

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