Tragedy averted! Delta plane carrying Panthers players slides off the taxiway, no casualties reported

Following a preseason loss to the New England Patriots, Delta plane carrying the Panthers' members back home, veered off the runway straight into the mud.

Tragedy averted! Delta plane carrying Panthers players slides off the taxiway, no casualties reported

Carolina Panthers (Via On3)

With a bizarre 17-3 loss against the New England Patriots, the Carolina Panthers experienced a rocky start to their preseason. But as they hopped onto the Delta plane to go back home, it ran off the taxiway around 2:35 at dawn. 

Mere hours after the match, as Delta Flight 8860 landed at Charlotte Douglas Airport, it veered off the runway straight into the mud, as Anders J. Hare of WCNC-NBC reported. Unfortunately, no passengers including players, coaches, and staff members of the Panthers franchise or the crew members were injured. 

YouTube video

The Delta airline released a statement a few hours later confirming that none of the 188 passengers were injured and the emergency crews responded to the incident immediately after the aircraft was stuck in the mud. 

FS Video
The right main gear of Delta 8860 exited the taxiway at Charlotte Douglas International Airport following a normal arrival. No injuries were reported by the 188 customers who are deplaning and being bused to the terminal. We apologize to our customers for the inconvenience.
The airlines’ official statement read

According to the FlightAware records, the Delta aircraft carrying the Panthers members departed from Providence, Rhode Island at 12:45 a.m. ET and landed in Charlotte after 2:40 a.m. ET. 

All the passengers were taken off before the aircraft was brought back to the taxiway from the mud. It was also later confirmed that this incident was not caused by any negligence at airfield lighting and the taxiway because they were completely operational. 

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Panther starters sit out as team test depth in preseason

The Panthers entered their first preseason match with most of their starters sidelined, including quarterback Bryce Young. However, the name was crucial for the team since it was the first one under the new head coach Dave Canales. 

For me, it was just a great opportunity to be able to talk to the coaches, talk to the officials. It was just great reps for me to just get the flow of how the communication happens and being able to work all through that.
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Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales
Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales (Via Imago)

The Panthers head coach explained the absence of most of the starters. He then said that they wanted to give a chance to the second or third team, who don’t get a chance in the NFL. 

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