A Delta plane slid off a snow-covered runway at LaGuardia Airport in New York last year because the pilots used the wrong technique for slowing down after a landing, US accident investigators concluded on Tuesday. By adding too much engine power for what is known as “reverse thrust” to help with braking, the crew caused the plane to skid to the left, the NTSB ruled. While other planes landing shortly before had stopped with no issues, the pilots were hampered by outdated runway condition reports and vague guidance in their manuals, the NTSB found. “Make no mistake: This was a very close call,” NTSB Chairman Christopher Hart said at the hearing in Washington. The Boeing Co. MD-88 carrying 127 passengers and five crew members slid onto a retaining wall and its nose came to rest over Flushing Bay on March 5, 2015. While no one was seriously hurt, 29 people suffered minor injuries. The captain used too much engine power while trying to stop, which can cause a loss of steering on a slick runway, according to NTSB documents. After being told the runway was “good” for braking, he was surprised when he descended through clouds to see that it was covered in snow, he told investigators. The safety board found that the pilot’s “situational stress” and high work load as he tried to stop contributed to the mistakes. “The pilots in this accident found themselves without timely and accurate information,” Hart said. It was unfair to simply cite the crew when they were battling marginal weather conditions and LaGuardia’s relatively short runways surrounded by the bay, said Captain Steve Jangelis, vice president for safety at the Air Line Pilots Association, which represents them. Morgan Durant, an airline spokesman, said “Delta leaders will use this NTSB guidance to further enhance the safety of our global operation.”<br/>