Elite football fans arrive in Bay Area on private jets
HAYWARD, Calif. -- Arriving in style for Super Bowl 50 means traveling in a private jet for some elite football fans. We took a closer look at what flying is like for those living the high life.
Six local airports have parking spaces set aside for private jets this week, the bulk located at Oakland International Airport.
At the Hayward Executive Airport, you can tell the big game is coming.
"We've been planning for Super Bowl for about 12 months," Hayward Airport manager Doug McNeeley said.
Well over 100 small, luxurious jets will land there over the weekend. Moments after touching down, they're guided into their parking spots, just steps away from a row of fancy rental cars. Passengers are handed their luggage as they get off the plane and ushered into a plush temporary terminal.
"We used a corporate aircraft hangar, emptied it out, and put some high-end furnishings in, as a way to welcome people because we expect a larger crowd than normal," McNeeley said.
The airport wouldn't tell us who is arriving for the big game, but hinted that some are VIPs, some sports figures, and celebrities.
Some of the jets are privately owned and others are chartered, hired especially for the Super Bowl.
Jorge Villegas pilots a Phenom 100 for JetSuite.
"The seats here are made of... it's Mercedes interior. A lot of the passengers do work on the flights, so we have these pull out trays, they set up their computers," Villegas said as he showed us the inside of the aircraft.
The plane has WiFi, satellite radio, electrical outlets and noise cancellation Bose headsets.
The cockpit stays open because they're not just here to fly, they're here to take care of the customers. It's all first class and the passengers are treated like first class.
Villegas was headed south to pick up another Super Bowl guest -- one of several trips he'll make before game day.
