Los Angeles, Ca
FAA probing near-collision involving Gonzaga basketball team charter jet at LAX
LOS ANGELES (KTLA) – The FAA is investigating an incident at Los Angeles International Airport where a private jet carrying the Gonzaga University men’s basketball team nearly crossed a runway as another plane was taking off.
The close call occurred last Friday afternoon and was livestreamed by Airline Videos.
The Key Lime Air jet was told to stop by air traffic controllers as a Delta flight took off.
“When the Embraer E135 jet proceeded to cross the hold bars, air traffic controllers told the pilots to stop,” the FAA said in a statement. “The jet never crossed the runway edge line.”
No injuries were reported.
The livestream included audio of the controller urgently saying, “Stop, stop, stop.”
Gonzaga was in Los Angeles for a game against UCLA.
“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,” the university said.
Key Lime Air did not respond to the Associated Press’s requests for comment, and Delta reported no issues with its flight.
“Delta flight 471 operated as normal, and we are not aware of any communication from the FAA regarding this flight. We are cooperating with aviation officials on their investigation,” the airline said.
The Key Lime Air flight had taken off from Spokane International Airport earlier that day. The FAA continues to investigate the situation.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.