The Utah Jazz are scheduled to play in Memphis on Wednesday, but their arrival is going to be a bit later than initially planned. The Jazz’s team charter was set to leave Salt Lake City for Memphis on Tuesday afternoon, but their plane had to turn around shortly after takeoff and land back in Salt Lake due to an engine issue.
Here’s a look from @KSLChopper5 at fire crews escorting a Delta 757 across @slcairport. We don’t have a ton of info yet, but @flightradar24 shows the flight taking off and immediately returning to land. @KSL5TV pic.twitter.com/vL48pe4qPw
— Sean Moody (@SeanMoodyPhoto) March 30, 2021
Believe this is the Jazz’s charter flight… flight number matches https://t.co/uWnH3iD2qO
— Andy Larsen (@andyblarsen) March 30, 2021
That it was indeed the Jazz’s charter plane was confirmed, with reporting that the plane hit some birds on takeoff, causing the engine problem and forcing the plane to turn around and land again.
I can confirm that this is the Utah Jazz team charter flight. The plane hit birds during takeoff resulting in an engine problem and immediate landing. https://t.co/Vm6GiyFVdc
— Andrea Urban (@AndreaUrbanTV) March 30, 2021
TrueHoop source on the Jazz flight to Memphis says the 757’s engine failed after hitting a flock of birds quickly after takeoff. The damage, especially to the engine, is obvious. They are still planning to go to Memphis later today. Team rattled.
— Henry Abbott (@TrueHoop) March 30, 2021
Happily, it seems the plane was able to safely land and the players on board seemed very happy to be back on ground after their scare, with a number posting to Twitter with simple messages of relief.
— Jordan Clarkson (@JordanClarksons) March 30, 2021
— Mike Conley (@MCONLEY10) March 30, 2021
GOD is good
— Royce O’Neale (@BucketsONeale00) March 30, 2021
It’s a beautiful day!
— Rudy Gobert (@rudygobert27) March 30, 2021
Hopefully the Jazz will get a new charter plane soon and be able to make it to Memphis later this evening with no further excitement, if you will. The team was sent home while they get a new plane.
A few details about the Jazz charter which had to return to SLC airport after hitting birds.
The incident happened 5-10 min after takeoff
A loud noise was heard at time of the incident
Team personnel has been sent home while another plane is made available
— Tony Jones (@Tjonesonthenba) March 30, 2021
There are few things scarier than being on a plane when anything goes wrong, and it’s good to know this wasn’t so serious that it required anything more than turning around and returning to the safety of the tarmac for repairs.