A charter plane from Las Vegas carrying members of the Pittsburgh Steelers football team landed in Kansas City, Missouri, early Monday after an oil pressure failure in one of the engines, multiple outlets reported.
Kwon Alexander and DeMarvin Leal of the Pittsburgh Steelers reacts after a play in the game against ... [+]
No injuries were reported and team spokesperson Burt Lauten confirmed everyone was safe in a post on X, adding that the Steelers are making "necessary plans to arrive back in Pittsburgh later today.”
Reporters for Pittsburgh’s KDKA-TV who were aboard the plane said it touched down in Kansas City just before 4 a.m. and fire trucks were at the scene to inspect the Airbus A330-900.
Multiple reports say a replacement plane should arrive in Missouri at 9 a.m. central time to pick up the 182 passengers aboard the original plane.
Defensive lineman Cam Heyward joked on X that the team should reach out to Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and superstar Taylor Swift for help getting a ride home, after Swift was seen watching the game from a box in Kansas City with Kelce's family and the pair were spotted together after.
The Steelers beat the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday by a score of 23-18 and improved to 2-1 on the season. The team was given Monday off by head coach Mike Tomlin before the plane problems, ESPN reported. The off-field highlight of the game was Swift’s presence, which came after Kelce said he’d invited her as his guest after attending a stop on her Era’s Tour. NFL commentators last week poked fun at dating rumors between the two, and photos and videos of Swift cheering him on alongside his family were broadcast on FOX during the game and made the rounds on social media.
There has never been a serious plane crash involving members of an NFL team, but there have been several involving college teams. Sixteen players were killed when a plane carrying members of the California Polytechnic State University team crashed in Ohio in 1960, and 14 players and their coach were killed in 1970 when one of two planes en route to a game crashed with members of the Wichita State University on board. Just a month later, on November 14, 1970, most of the Marshall University team died when their plane hit the tree line and exploded upon impact in West Virginia. Among those killed were 37 players and 9 coaches. The incident inspired the biographical sports drama We Are Marshall.
Steelers' plane makes emergency landing in Kansas City (ESPN)
Taylor Swift And Travis Kelce: NFL Commentators Poke Fun At Dating Rumors (Forbes)