The jet carrying the Arsenal women’s team back to London after their first-leg Champions League semi-final against Wolfsburg caught fire after a bird flew into the engine. Arsenal were returning to north London after a 2-2 draw with the defending Fraun-Bundelisga champions VfL Wolfsburg at the Volkswagen Stadium on Sunday.
However, shocking photographs from the scene show flames leaping from the engine on the Boeing 737 carrying the squad on the runway at Germany’s Braunschweig Wolfsburg Airport. According to the German daily BILD, the Maltese airline plane made a loud noise soon before takeoff on Sunday.
Scary incident as engine of jet flying Arsenal Women’s team catches fire
When the terrified pilots saw the fire, they swiftly landed the jet on the tarmac and evacuated the passengers. According to an airport spokeswoman, the fire was sparked by a bird strike on the engine. Nobody was wounded in the event, according to the airport authority.
The 7.30 p.m. flight was scheduled to depart just hours after Arsenal drew 2-2 with VfL Wolfsburg in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final. According to witnesses, the plane, which was purportedly from a Maltese airline, was rocked by a huge blast immediately before takeoff Friday night.
The Arsenal players and personnel spent the night in a nearby hotel before being safely taken to London on a new plane on Monday. The airport is partially owned by the Volkswagen Group brand, which is headquartered in Wolfsburg. A spokesman for Arsenal said:
“Our aircraft developed a technical issue prior to take-off in Germany on Sunday evening. As a result, we remained in Wolfsburg overnight on Sunday before flying back to England on Monday afternoon. We would like to thank the staff onboard the aircraft and on the ground at the airport for their assistance.”
The airfield serves as the home base for Volkswagen Air Services, the company’s own airline fleet. Arsenal will return to play on May 1 when they host Wolfsburg in the second leg of their Champions League semi-final. Rafaelle Souza and Stina Blackstenius scored in the second half to secure Arsenal’s dramatic comeback tie.
The performance was especially noteworthy given that Jonas Eidevall’s team had sustained injuries to top players Kim Little and Leah Williamson in the lead-up to their European match. With the tie level as the Gunners head to north London, the WSL team will be optimistic about reaching their first European final since 2007. That was the last time an English club won the tournament in its 22-year history.
They have a chance to go to the Women’s Champions League Final against either London rivals Chelsea or Spanish powerhouse Barcelona. Barcelona lead Chelsea 1-0 on aggregate after defeating them at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. On Thursday, the Blues will go to Camp Nou to conclude the tie.
Barcelona won the championship in 2021, but Lyon are the competition’s masters, having won it eight times since 2011. Olympique Lyon, on the other hand, was eliminated from this year’s edition in the quarter-finals after being defeated on penalties by Chelsea.