The Federal Aviation Administration has launched an investigation to figure out what caused a near-collision between a charter plane carrying the Gonzaga men’s basketball team and a Delta aircraft that was taking off from Los Angeles International Airport on Friday.
An air traffic controller desperately pleaded for the Bulldogs’ plane to a stop just before it could cross paths with a Delta plane that was taking off for Atlanta, Georgia. No one was injured.
“In the years I’ve been doing this, I’ve never heard an ATC controller tell a plane to ‘Stop, stop, stop’,” said Kevin Ray, who uploaded the video of the near-collision to YouTube.
NEW: The FAA has launched an investigation after the men’s Gonzaga basketball team nearly got eliminated by a Delta plane taking off.
“Stop! Stop! Stop!” the air traffic controller could be heard saying.
The chartered Embraer E135 jet, carrying the team, had just landed at… pic.twitter.com/6UAUOG5wiP
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) December 30, 2024
The next day, the Bulldogs (9-4) fell to UCLA in a 65-62 final from the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. Graham Ike led the way with 24 points and eight rebounds for the Zags, who overcame yet another slow start to pull within striking distance late, only to come up short yet again in the end. Ryan Nembhard had a chance to tie the game at 63 apiece with under 10 seconds left, though the usually surefire free throw shooter missed the mark to the benefit of the Bruins.
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