Memo to the boys of Bon Jovi: Airport runways can be slippery when wet.
The hard-rockin’ Jersey band got the bump of their lives yesterday when their private Boeing 707 skidded while landing on a rainy runway and slid off the tarmac at a small airport in Hamilton, Ontario.
Nobody was injured, and the 14 passengers emerged from the plane in a jovial mood, according to a witness. The band, famous for such ’80s albums as “Slippery When Wet,” didn’t even skip its concert in Toronto last night.
“Everybody’s fine,” said rep Ken Sunshine. “The shows will go on.”
The charter plane took the band from its show in Buffalo to Toronto for a three-night run as part of its “Have a Nice Day” tour. After landing in slick weather at around 1 a.m., the plane taxied to the end of the 10,000-foot runway, said airport president Richard Koroscil.
The plane’s wheels lost traction and slid 30 to 40 feet, he estimated, coming to rest at the end of the runway, its nosegear dipping into a muddy, grassy area.
“Everybody was taken off the plane, put in vans, cleared customs and headed off to Toronto,” he added.
(p. 21 Metro)