The Miami Dolphins just managed to make me interested in football for a brief moment… by telling me about their travel logistics.
Continue reading: Fascinating: Miami Dolphins’ Atlas Air Boeing 747 Charters
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
You should absolutely watch Kelsey's video. He's a 747 pilot for Atlas Air and covered flying sport teams charters in a recent video - much more interesting for us AvGeeks. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7W23mBMb9Jk
Seems like this is the same configuration Sonair’s Houston Express used to fly between Houston and Angola.
I remember back in the 80s before travel by sports teams got fancy, there was an Alaska plane the Seattle Seahawks used that was a standard commercial plane other than the bulkhead and other locations had pictures of the football team instead of regular Alaska Airlines images. During the week it just flew regular routes.
Where is the confected outrage? When everyday folks travel on a fully loaded 737 its an environmental problem. But when one football team with hangers-on travel on jumbo jet.....crickets.
Come on Ben, American football is always fun to watch. Just put the game on in the back ground while you work (during the season) . I’ve been a Miami Dolphins fan since the early 70s!
They take this plane 10, max 12 times a year. The outrage is in your own head.
Hey friend,
Looks like you've found your way to this great travel and aviation blog. Here, we're travel and aviation enthusiasts.
Happy commenting!
NFL takes great care of their current players, but once they've served their use, are discarded to a life of suffering the TBI inflicted for the profit of a few very-rich billionaires.
For people who are interested, Wendover has a pretty good documentary about NFL logistics on youtube.
Well they need to fly 180 people so it's not bad at all. The outrage is usually towards individuals or couples flying gulfstreams that have a fuel burn of 300 gallons per hour. A 747 burns around 3600 gallons per hour.
So a CEO travelling alone on a gulfstream - 300 gallons per hour
A miami dolphin staff/player travelling as a group on a 747 - 15 gallons per hour
Now let's compare this with a commercial united jet that could carry 180 people i.e. a 767-300. The miami dolphin player/staff - 7 gallons per hour.
So although it's more it is not too bad when you consider how many people are flying. And 20x less than what people are usually outraged at.
I don't think anyone is arguing that all 3 of the above contribute to CO2 emissions. I also don't think there is much outrage about passengers flying on fully loaded commercial 737s.
Yo Scudder!
So what! Who cares! I'd feel it to be a privilege to play in the NFL!
Booyah
“NFL teams play a lot of away games each season”
11 away games is “a lot”?
Only compared to zero. What professional sports team has zero away games?
The Baltimore Ravens use an Atlas Air 747 charter to fly to their road games for the most part (have taken Amtrak in the past to games in NYC, unsure about Philadelphia).
Man, some of these 'athletes' do not look the slightest bit athletic.
Thanks for sharing the video, though!
The former Crystal cruise operator, in one of their many poor decisions, bought a used 777-200LR to operate "Crystal AirCruises" and outfitted it in a very spacious configuration Which flopped in spectacular fashion; however, they were able to mitigate some of their loss by using it as a charter aircraft for sports teams. It only seated 88 passengers all in biz class staggered 2x2x2 configuration with a dining/bar area. My understanding is that NBA teams were the biggest users of the aircraft with their much smaller roster of players/support staff and gear.
Guangzhou Evergrande First Squad + Core Staffs(Coaches on the court) often use their boss, Xu Jia Ying's private jet when travelling around Asia for Asian World Championship and sometimes domestically after an important game back in the old prime days.
Depends on the contract, for example, some players would have obligation to travel in First Class.
The Arizona Cardinals took N322SG (Atlas 747) as their primary mode of transportation, until they purchased the used Delta jet. Jacksonville and Arizona were the first teams to charter with Atlas.
United & Delta Airlines mainly chartered NFL Teams
For Delta planes it’s usually A330’s & B764’s
For United they mainly use B777-200ER
AA mainly flew LA Rams & Dallas Cowboys & Philadelphia Eagles that’s usually a B789 or B777-200ER
Hey Ben, if you liked that video then I think you'll love this one about the traveling for the NFL's first ever game in Germany last year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFsCt5h2XJQ
I wonder if that's an ex-Thai Airways 744 - the first class seats certainly are!
Cool post, thanks Ben!
Players, coaches and support staff are in business class seats. The executive team is in the front.
Correct. Atlas repainted the sonair jets to their livery and now use them for VIP charters.
back in the day teams flew commercial. First class seats went by seniority. My dad use to fly alot in first class often a basketball team was on the same flight. If he had an aisle seat and the player had a window seat, he would almost always switch seats. He said that some of the taller players were squashed even in first. Pity the rookies in coach.
Gerald, a team may not have 11 road games every year, but 9-11 is the range every year, including preseason. This is before you factor in the playoff games that are possible. A team could end up with 14-15 road games a year if they make the playoffs as a low seed and make a run to the Super Bowl.
Around 10 away games is not that much . An NHL or NBA team has over 50 in a season . Much more rigorous travel schedule as they will have up to 4 cities in 1 week , playoffs are even worse.
It was purchased and designed for Son Air of Angola for the Houston Express 12 yes ago. Same layout. I worked this very aircraft for Atlas 12 yes ago.
Ben, the New England Patriots flying documentary is much more compelling.
Nice of you to "touch grass" though.....
Wow! Great job touching grass.....
Next the history of the original Tampa Bay Buccaneers owner and how his cheapness threatened the lives of his players back in the late 1970's to 1980's. What is it with
Florida and cheap attention seeking mega megalomaniac? Not you Ben.....
You should cover Taylor Swifts Era Tour next.
It's a perfect mirror to class and economic policy in America.....
Atlas Air needs to do an "Extra Ordinary Rendition" on Russell Wilson via Atlas Air. (Atlas Air being famous for sending many innocent people to Torture Chambers around the world).
Surprised that the airlines do not have a contract for this. For example they do with the olympics or the ski team, etc.
Some do. Hawaiian has flown the Raiders for years. I believe Delta handles the NBA in specially configured 757s that are owned by the league and teams jointly and operated and maintained by Delta under contract. The Dodgers fly on a United 757.
That’s a good point. Measuring environmental footprint requires a lot of variables. The original poster falls onto the trap that it a binary question
Am I right to say that it appears those businesses seats are only angle flat, rather than lie flat?