Flying with the Champions: How VIP Charters Cater to the Unique Needs of Professional Athletes
Professional sports are an incredibly competitive field with no margin for error or the luxury of a bad day. What might seem like the smallest detail to us can be the difference between glory and heartbreak. No wonder that the top athletes and sports teams typically choose to travel to their games by VIP charter planes. The team members of KlasJet, a global private and business charter service airline, emphasize that during such flights, the key task is to adapt to the particular needs of the athletes on board.
From football teams to polo players
For the professional teams at the highest level, flights by VIP charter are not a luxury, but more of a necessity. Modern teams play more high-stakes games than ever, and also travel more often and farther than clubs did twenty or thirty years ago. The Athletic, a highly influential sports publication, reported that a typical Premier League team has 58 such trips every season. The number is even higher for clubs at the highest level.
And then there are major national team competitions such as the Euros and the World Cup, which take place every other year. During such events, demand for VIP chartered flights rises significantly. According to Šarūnė Valaikaitė, a flight attendant at KlasJet, sports are highly seasonal, and during major events, the need for flights goes up significantly.
“Football is the most obvious example. When tournaments as big as the Euros or World Cup are approaching, almost all of our planes are flying only national teams. Formula 1 and basketball teams also create extra demand. Our aircraft have 60 seats and are most suitable for football or rugby teams, so naturally we fly with them the most,” she says.
As Ms. Valaikaitė remembers, depending on the sports calendar, athletes can make up the majority of KlasJet’s passengers. For example, during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, it was common to see several of the airline’s planes with national football teams in the air at the same time.
“It’s also very nice that the diversity of the sports we work with is constantly expanding. For instance, this year we traveled with some of the athletes who compete in MotoGP motorcycle championships. We even had horse polo players on board. Just without the horses, of course,” she jokes.
