The New England Patriots have become the first NFL team to buy their own plane to fly to away games, ESPN reports. Well, they bought two of them.
The franchise has reportedly purchased two 767 Boeing wide-body jets in the offseason and customized them with the team logo and five Lombardi trophies on the tail. The plane will contain all first-class seats, most of which completely recline.
According to ESPN, these planes generally cost between $5 million and $65 million, but since the planes the Patriots bought are extended range, allowing them to fly nonstop for about 12 hours, the brand new planes could cost upward of $200 million.
ESPN
Historically, it hasn’t made much sense for NFL teams to buy their own planes, seeing as their are only 10 away games (playoffs excluded) but charter travel has gotten more expensive over the past couple of years, due to the major carriers beginning to rid themselves of the bigger planes that fly the teams around. 10 round-trip flights per season can cost up to $4 million. For major carriers like Delta and American Airlines, its a better business decision to retire these planes rather than gut and rework the planes to meet Federal Aviation Administration requirements.
The Patriots were reportedly interested in the planes helping give its players and staff a head start on the recovery process. As if they need it.
BREAKING: This news is Jeremy Shockey approved.
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[h/t ESPN]