WNBA's bumpy rollout of charter flight program drawing criticism from players: 'Not happy about it'

The league said Thursday it expects all 12 teams to be flying charter by May 21, exactly one week into the regular season

By Erica Ayala May 20, 2024 at 1:50 pm ET• 6 min read

For the first time in its 28-year history, the WNBA will have league-wide charter flights for all 12 teams. The league is expected to fully implement the program Tuesday, exactly one week into the regular season. 

"The decision to implement charters is not only the right thing to do, but it is also right for the business because it demonstrates the willingness of management to invest in the players. It's both," WNBPA executive director Terri Jackson told CBS Sports via email last week. "And 'competitive advantage' had nothing to do with it." 

Although the final program is what players have vocally pushed for, especially during their 2020 collective bargaining agreement negotiations with the WNBA, the execution before full implementation this week has left players frustrated. CBS Sports collected responses from the WNBA, players, team representatives and the players association ahead of the full charter flight program rollout. 

Before this season, charter flights were considered an unfair competitive advantage and prohibited for individual teams. Charter flights were also deemed too expensive to implement league-wide. According to Article XI, Section 4 of the current CBA, all teams must travel premium economy or similar enhanced coach fare for all league trips.