A college basketball team got more than it bargained for during a flight home Sunday after the plane the team was traveling on was forced to make an emergency landing due to an engine failure.
According to CBS San Francisco, the No. 5 ranked Kansas Jayhawks men’s basketball team boarded the flight at San Jose International Airport Sunday afternoon following their victory over the Stanford Cardinal, 72-56.
About 20 minutes after taking off for Kansas, one of the plane’s engines failed, forcing the flight crew to call for an emergency landing back in San Jose. The aircraft landed safely without incident and no injuries were reported.
“Upon our return flight home from San Jose, CA, roughly 20 minutes into the flight, one of the engines failed,” a spokesperson for the Kansas athletic department said in a statement. “The pilot immediately contacted the San Jose Airport where we returned and made a safe landing. We are grateful to the pilots and the entire crew of Swift Air. We will stay the night in San Jose and return to Lawrence once the plans have been finalized.”
Several Jayhawks players and staff members shared videos and comments regarding the traumatic experience:
Statement regarding the @KUHoops flight home: pic.twitter.com/E23EHbohIS
— Kansas Jayhawks (@KUAthletics) December 30, 2019
@KUHoops plane blows engine on flight back to Lawrence. We just landed safely back in San Jose. pic.twitter.com/aAKPcavCUK
— Ryan White (@ryanwhite_01) December 30, 2019
Gotta appreciate and thank the man up above every single minute of your life.
Thank God#Iaintseemyfamilyin2years— Silvio De Sousa (@SilvioDeSousa5) December 30, 2019
When the Swift Air plane landed at the San Jose airport, it was met by the San Jose Fire Department, but their services were not required. The Kansas basketball team is off until they host No. 22 West Virginia on January 4.
