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The skies are about to become a lot more friendly for WNBA teams.

Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said Tuesday that the league is close to launching a program for teams to charter flights for travel to all games, bringing it in line with common practice for major men’s professional leagues. Travel has been a long-standing source of contention between the league and its players as teams have flown on commercial flights for road games. Engelbert, who made the announcement at the Associated Press Sports Editors Commissioners Meetings in New York, said the change could be implemented as soon as this season if the details are finalized — regular season games begin May 14.

Players have lobbied for these changes for years, citing more than just a comfort factor. Security is an issue when teams arrive at airports for their commercial flights early and players are left to wander among other travelers before boarding with the public. Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner was <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/06/10/brittney-griner-confrontation-airport/" target=_blank>confronted by a right-wing social media personality</a> at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport last year. The Indiana Fever has discussed the extensive security measures it put in place for travel after <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2024/04/15/caitlin-clark-wnba-draft-first-pick/" target=_blank>drafting Caitlin Clark</a>, who became a household name while <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2024/03/03/caitlin-clark-iowa-senior-day/" target=_blank>becoming the all-time leading scorer</a> in the NCAA’s top division.

As the WNBA’s popularity has increased significantly in recent years — alongside an increase in attention on women’s basketball as a whole — security concerns have only risen.

Then-Mercury forward Brianna Turner, a vice president for the Women’s National Basketball Players Association, tweeted last year after the incident involving Griner: “Player safety while traveling should be at the forefront. People following with cameras saying wild remarks is never acceptable. Excessive harassment. Our team nervously huddled in a corner unsure how to move about. We demand better.”

Players also have noted that commercial flights can be a health issue that directly affects the quality of play. Squeezing tall players into cramped seats to fly across the country and sometimes play in early games the next day can take a toll on their bodies, players have argued, and makes them susceptible to additional injury.

Engelbert, who said Tuesday she expected the program to cost $25 million this season, has long stated that fully committing to chartered flights was an economic risk for the league that she was unwilling to take. The league already had approved chartered flights for playoff games, the Commissioner’s Cup and games held on back-to-back nights that require air travel at a cost of $4 million for this season, Engelbert said at the WNBA draft last month. The New York Liberty was fined by the league for chartering flights in 2021.

“We’re not going to jeopardize the financial viability of this league,” Engelbert said at the draft. “It was just a few years ago we were surviving, and now we’re going from survive to thrive.”

She added then that the change would come at an appropriate time. That time seems to have arrived.

“This isn’t because it’s the right thing to do,” Engelbert said Tuesday. “It’s because it’s good for [the] business.”

<i>Joe Tone in New York contributed to this report.</i>

University of Michigan

Kareem Copeland has covered Washington's NFL franchise, the Utah Jazz, Indianapolis Colts, Indiana Pacers and Green Bay Packers. He has also covered the Olympics, Super Bowls and extensively written about college athletics. 

Kareem Copeland

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WNBA close to launching program for teams to take chartered flights

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A photo of women's basketball players waiting to board a bus at an airport with the headline: WNBA teams fly commercial. They might soon get their own planes.

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WNBA teams fly commercial. They might soon get their own planes.

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