Knicks' Sky-High Celebration: What Happened on That Flight?
The Knicks’ championship celebration was cleared for takeoff.
The party began on the ground in San Antonio, but continued high in the sky on the team’s chartered Delta flight to New York just hours after its first championship in 53 years.
“And if you can, tell those guys congratulations, enjoy the moment,” one air traffic controller who cleared the team for takeoff in Texas is heard saying on newly released audio.
“Oh, they’re enjoying it back there; you probably can hear them,” one of the pilots replied. “They’re having a good time, we’ll pass it on.
“The plane’s rocking,” he said. “They’re having a party.”
The air traffic controller explained that he wanted to pass along congratulations before the players “fell asleep” — but the newly minted NBA champs chose celebration over slumber.
The flight was later cleared for a scenic detour that took them over the Verrazzano Narrows Bridge and up the Hudson River before heading north to Westchester County Airport.
“Please let the guys know, New York TRACON, LaGuardia tower, Kennedy tower, maybe even Newark tower and Westchester tower, we’re all running on about three or four hours of sleep but as happy as we could ever be,” one air traffic controller broadcast before the plane hit the runway. “Congrats.”
“They finally settled down about 30 minutes ago,” the pilot answered,” but before that, it was a pretty excited bunch back here,” the pilot replied.
“I believe we’re all excited here,” the controller answered. “We’re on our second box of coffee this morning. “Go New York.”
The accolades continued after the Delta flight touched down at the Westchester airport after a four-hour flight Sunday morning, where the team was greeted with a water cannon salute.
Delta had been on board with the Knicks throughout their magical playoff run, handing out more than 2,000 rally towels and gifting two lucky fans tickets to Game 4 of the NBA Finals at MSG.
“New York has long been an important part of Delta’s story, and it is an honor to celebrate alongside the Knicks, MSG and our customers with this exciting win,” Emmakate Young, managing director of sponsorships for the airline, said in a statement.
New Yorkers across the city celebrated the Knicks’ win over the San Antonio Spurs all of Saturday night and into the wee hours of Sunday morning.
While there were 63 arrests stemming from some violent celebrations, the city became a sea of orange-and-blue bliss, with some committing to naming their newborns after Knicks stars and a bus driver dancing with fans.
A ticker-tape parade down the Canyon of Heroes is scheduled for Thursday.
