Dodgers arrive in LA on Patriots team plane
LOS ANGELES - The Los Angeles Dodgers returned home Thursday morning as 2024 World Series champions.
SkyFOX caught the arrival of the boys in blue, friends, and family as they touched down at Los Angeles International Airport around 8 a.m. on a United 777 plane.
All eyes were on those deplaning the aircraft after the Dodgers beat the New York Yankees in five games, clinching the title with a 7-6 victory in the Bronx.
But a second plane that arrived shortly after the first got many people talking.
It was a New England Patriots plane that touched down not long afterward, prompting questions from the internet.
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"Boston didn't make it to the series this year, so they loaned the Patriots' team plane to the Dodgers for their trip home," someone said on X.
The United plane was reportedly carrying friends and family, while the Patriots plane was for team members. Shortly after cabin doors opened, Mookie Betts and Shohei Ohtani were seen descending the stairs, followed by Walker Buehler carrying the championship trophy.
"The Boston-New York rivalry is real. Yankees lose and the Patriots send their plane to take the Dodgers home to LA," another chimed in on X.
"The Patriots have always leased out the planes when the team isn't using them," another explained.
"They lease the two planes - Kraft doesn't own the planes outright any longer and they are available for charter," someone else said.
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"Dodgers arriving in the Patriots plane was not on my bingo card," another wrote.
A team spokesperson told MassLive the flight was a standard charter booked through a company the Patriots use. The publication also noted the Patriots' history of chartering out its planes and loaning them out for various purposes. For example, the plane was loaned to University of Virginia players in 2022 so the team could travel to the funerals of teammates killed in a mass shooting. In 2020, the plane was used to deliver millions of face masks from China to the U.S. during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.
The Dodgers are home for a day of rest as they gear up for two major celebration events on Friday.
The championship parade begins at 11 a.m. PT at Gloria Molina Grand Park on Spring Street in front of Los Angeles City Hall.
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Following the parade, a ticketed celebration event will take place at Dodger Stadium. To learn more about the celebration events and how to get tickets, tap or click here.
You can watch the parade on channel 11. FOX 11 will have live coverage of all the celebrations from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. PT.
The parade will also be streamed for free on Roku, Amazon FireTV, Apple TV, Google Android TV and Vizio with the FOX LOCAL app.