Dwight Yoakam Details Frightening Plane Emergency That Delayed Lubbock Concert by Over an Hour

Dwight Yoakam has addressed fans after a Lubbock, TX, show ran over an hour and a half late on Thursday (Feb. 12). In a new statement shared across social media, he explained that the delay was caused by a frightening plane emergency before takeoff and said he wanted to “personally” apologize that the information was not communicated more clearly to the audience at the time.

The country singer began by acknowledging that it wasn’t until today that he fully understood why fans in attendance at the Buddy Holly Hall of Performing Arts and Sciences were so frustrated in the moment. He explained that updates about his late arrival hadn’t been communicated clearly at the time, and instead, only a “vague anonymous PA announcement” was made.

While a packed crowd was waiting for him, he says the plane he had boarded was facing an emergency in the cockpit, causing the crew to abort takeoff.

“What actually happened Thursday afternoon was that we had an emergency takeoff abort as the aircraft was about to lift off from the runway due to a mechanical failure warning in the cockpit.”

Luckily, the situation was quickly handled with “exceptional professional skill,” thus preventing any more serious or potentially catastrophic outcomes.

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A post shared by Dwight Yoakam (@dwightyoakam)

“After taxiing back to the hangar and concluding that the issue with the aircraft could not be corrected, we were luckily able to be moved to a different plane and continue our flight to the show in Lubbock approximately an hour and thirty minutes after my scheduled 9:00PM stage time,” he continued.

After the show took place, several fans in attendance returned to a Facebook post by the venue to share their experience, many of which voiced their dissatisfaction with the night.

One user noted that it was incredibly “unprofessional” behalf of the venue as only two announcements were made and attendees were not allowed re-entry

“As I look down on the audience I see a lot of empty seats where I’m sure people left. It will be a long time before I attend another event there,” the frustrated user wrote.

Another said, “we all waited and waited….and waited. Might have been less irritating if y’all had attempted to communicate.”

It seems that refunds were offered upon request and that the opening band attempted to keep the audience entertained for as long as possible. Under Yoakam’s recent post, fans simply expressed gratitude that everyone was safe in the end and stated that his kind words were greatly appreciated. One even noted that the show was “definitely worth the wait.”

Yoakam once again expressed his “sincere apologies” to everyone who was affected by the delay and not properly updated in the process.

“I am very sorry for any frustration and disappointment the delay caused,” he added.

This show marked the Kentucky native’s first headline show of 2026. He has several more headline shows on the books, as well as dates with ZZ Top for the Dos Amigos Tour. This trek

Begins March 26 in Brookings, SD and continues through May.

Fans can next catch the “Fast As You” singer performing in Mobile, AL on Thursday, February 19.