A DELTA plane carrying members of the Carolina Panthers football team and hundreds of others skidded off the taxiway on Friday morning.
Emergency crews surrounded the jet as players and passengers were slowly ushered off the aircraft.
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The incident took place at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina, officials have confirmed.
At around 2:40 am, the aircraft landed safely on the runway before coming off the taxiway.
The skid occurred when the landing gear on the right side of the plane went off the taxiway between the gate and the runway.
Dramatic footage showed emergency crews swarming the jet, according to local outlet WBTV shows.
“Players and coaches were aboard a Delta airplane that ran off the taxiway,” the news outlet reported.
“Glad they are all safe. God Thankyou,” one fan wrote.
“Glad they are good man,” another wrote.
Meanwhile, a third took the opportunity to take a punch at the team’s recent performance saying, “Longest run they had all night.”
Delta confirmed that 188 passengers were on board and that they were slowly escorted off the plane around 3:45 am when stairs were taken to the taxiway, per the news outlet.
All passengers, including the Panthers, were taken to the terminal by bus.
The airline has confirmed that the flight number was 8860 and the aircraft was a Boeing 767-300.
The flight was coming in from Providence, Rhode Island, according to records from Flight Aware.
No injuries have been reported.
“The right main gear of Delta 8860 exited the taxiway at Charlotte Douglas International Airport following a normal arrival,” Delta told The U.S. Sun in a statement.
“No injuries were reported by the 188 customers who were bused to the terminal.
“We apologize to our customers for the inconvenience.”
The NFL team was returning home from a game on Thursday night.
The Panthers lost to the Patriots 17-3 in their preseason opener in New England.
That is the Week 1 clash between the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers on Friday, September 6.
The game is being played at Corinthians Arena in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and will be streamed live on Peacock across the United States.
We also know the identity of the home teams for the three games in London, England, and one in Munich, Germany.
The Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings will host games at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, while the other London home team will be the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium.
The Carolina Panthers are also confirmed for the game at Munich’s Allianz Arena.
They will next be facing the New York Jets on August 18 at their home stadium.
Meanwhile, former Panther player Jacob Eason is looking for another team after the Green Bay Packers brutally cut him during camp.
The quarterback who was drafted in 2020 only joined the Wisconsin team a month ago.
He has now been with six teams in the past four years after starting out in the NFL with the Indianapolis Colts.
The 26-year-old’s sudden departure from the Packers comes after the team successfully negotiated a deal with quarterback Jordan Love.
