Denver International Airport flight aborts takeoff after 'emergency' incident, WestJet says

Lauren Penington and Katie Langford, The Denver Post on Jun 18, 2026

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DENVER — A Canada-bound flight aborted takeoff at Denver International Airport on Thursday afternoon after the flight crew declared an emergency following an “incident” and evacuated passengers onto the runway, airline officials said.

WestJet officials confirmed there was an issue involving a flight headed to Calgary, Alberta, Canada, in an emailed statement, but did not detail what happened on board.

The incident happened at around 12:30 p.m., airport spokesperson Ashley Forest said. No one was injured, and Forest referred all other questions to WestJet.

Flight 1571 was scheduled to depart Denver International Airport for Calgary at 12:15 p.m. Thursday, according to flight tracking information from FlightAware. The plane left the gate at 12:08 p.m., but never finished taxiing.

The Denver Police Department declined to comment on the incident and referred questions to the airport and WestJet. The Denver Fire Department referred questions to the airport.