It can accommodate up to 71 total passengers, includes 24 fully-reclining, 360-degree swiveling sleeper seats for the players, and has 47 other first-class seats located in three other sections throughout the plane.
The new 757, which will be utilized by both the Stars and the Texas Rangers baseball team, also features an upgraded video entertainment system and an iPod docking station that allows passengers to play movies from a lap-top, iPod or DVD player in each section. There are also two electrical outlets and phone jacks at each seat, a bar in the back, as well as a comfortable four-seat couch.
For a team that will fly approximately 112 total hours in the air over the course of the regular season and which will have 16 flights where the club returns to Dallas immediately after a night game, traveling in such luxurious conditions can only help.
“I think that, certainly with the travel that we do, that any advantage that we give our players is going to benefit us in the long term,” said Stars General Manager Doug Armstrong. “We probably travel more than anyone in the NHL right now, and to have a plane like this and to have the seating where the players can recline, it’s going to really enhance our travel and make things a lot better for us. And I think there will be a competitive advantage, not only to our team, but also in acquiring free agents.”
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }