An investigation has begun at Liverpool's John Lennon Airport after an incident on Tuesday that almost left visiting soccer team Bayer Leverkusen without their shirts, shorts, socks and boots. On a chilly night on Merseyside, the German Bundesliga team, in Liverpool for the first game of their Champions League clash, were nearly left with everything hanging in the wind as their kit made its way back across the channel with the team ready for action. The aircraft carrying the Leverkusen party dropped off the players but then flew back to Düsseldorf with their kit and footwear still aboard. Airport staff averted the potential embarrassment by chartering a small aircraft to chase the Airbus back to Germany, retrieve the kit and then fly back to Liverpool. The 4.5 hour round trip cost the airport £4,000 (€5,765) and prompted the investigation.