The Red Devils left on Wednesday at about 12:15 Belgian time for the football World Cup in Russia on board the “Trident”, the national team’s Brussels Airline plane. They will remain in the air for three hours before landing at the Sheremetyevo international airport in Moscow, the airline indicated.
The 24 players, head coach Roberto Martinez, his staff of about 30, and 55 journalists were scheduled to travel on the Airbus A320 with 90 footballs, 1,300 jerseys and 150 pairs of shoes.
According to Brussels Airlines, each player has his own custom-made seat with his name inscribed on the headrest. A special menu was worked out with the team’s nutritionist: shrimp cocktail for starters, followed by a main course of chicken in coconut milk with rice and vegetables or salmon with spinach pasta. Also included in the meal, which ends with a sweet dessert – a rice tart – were three types of dairy products, apples and bananas.
Brussels Airlines will begin operating its fan flights on the 16th of June to take supporters to Sochi, Moscow and Kaliningrad. Over 4.500 fans will be flown to Russia for the three matches in the group stage. A total of 23 flights are scheduled and others will be added if the team qualifies for the final 16
Supporters can opt for one-day return tickets, tickets allowing them to stay for a few days or open tickets.
On board the fan flights, the cabin crew will prepare supporters for the match and teach them basic Russian words, Brussels Airlines revealed.
The Brussels Times
