The Gonzaga University men's basketball team found themselves in a scary situation after their private plane almost collided with another aircraft taking off on a runway at LAX.
The nearly catastrophic incident occurred on Friday as the team landed in Los Angeles for their game against UCLA the following day. Footage from the incident showed the private aircraft operated by Key Lime Air navigating the tarmac right when a Delta plane made liftoff. According to a report by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), air traffic controllers ordered the plane to stop, as it would have collided with the Delta flight that was rising into the sky.
"Air traffic controllers directed Key Lime Air Flight 563 to hold short of crossing a runway at Los Angeles International Airport because a second aircraft was taking off from the runway at the time," the FAA said in a statement. "When the Embraer E135 jet proceeded to cross the hold bars, air traffic controllers told the pilots to stop. The jet never crossed the runway edge line."
In a statement, a Gonzaga University representative wrote, "We understand that the incident at LAX is under investigation, and we will review this information as it becomes available. Our team members aboard the aircraft were unaware of the situation as it occurred, and we are grateful that the incident ended safely for all."
On a live stream video of the ordeal, a controller can be heard telling the private aircraft to "stop, stop, stop" as the Delta flight took off. The FAA announced they are running a full investigation into the matter, which Delta stated they were unaware of, according to a report by USA Today.
"Delta flight 471 operated as normal, and we are not aware of any communication from the FAA regarding this flight," Delta said in a statement. "We are cooperating with aviation officials on their investigation."
