Arrested then followed for several meters by a member of Blaze TV, an ultra-conservative media, Brittney Griner had a difficult time in Dallas airport and, unwittingly, relaunched a debate in the WNBA, that of the travel conditions of franchises.
As we know, WNBA teams take commercial flights because the league does not want to disadvantage franchises that cannot afford private flights. Only who says commercial flights, says possible contact with other travelers or even delays, so long waits in an airport.
Obviously, the incident around the Phoenix Mercury player has moved the lines since ESPN tells us that the teams will now be able to fly with the company JSX. These are not private flights, but the conditions are more favorable for female players.
Better conditions, but not for everyone
The company operates on private terminals, which avoids teams having to go through the airport and through security. Second, the planes can hold thirty passengers, allowing teams to charter the entire flight, at prices comparable to commercial flights.
The downsides, however (which explain that these are not private flights): JSX services are not available in all the cities of the WNBA teams. They can be found in Los Angeles, Phoenix, Las Vegas, Dallas and New York.
In addition, they are subject to schedules and routes defined in advance. JSX can certainly add flights to its program, but then they will be more expensive, and the WNBA prohibits this. At the start of the season, the Las Vegas Aces had set up a personalized flight schedule, but the information came out in the press. After a theft, the franchise had decided not to use it anymore, to avoid a fine.
