Summary
- Spain's women's national football team flew back home to Madrid on a specialized Airbus A350 provided by Iberia, the country's flag carrier.
- The flight had a stopover in Doha, Qatar, and was slightly delayed, but ultimately arrived in Madrid safely.
- The captain onboard the flight congratulated the players before the flight, calling their win "a historic moment."
Spain's women's national football team is back home in Madrid following a win against England at the FIFA Women's World Cup in Sydney, Australia. On Monday, Spain's flag airline Iberia carried the world champions back to the country onboard a specialized Airbus A350.
The flight comes just three days after an Iberia flight carried family, friends and sponsors of Spain's women's national football team to Sydney for the final. Similar to its Sydney-bound route, the flight had a stopover in Doha, Qatar, to break up the long journey.
Flight details
According to Flightradar24.com data, the aircraft, EC-NIS, departed from Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (SYD) as IB2813 on Sunday at 07:28 for its 14-hour flight to Doha. The widebody plane flew at a cruising altitude of 36,000 feet and landed at Hamad International Airport (DOH) at 14:39.
The Doha bound leg was running behind schedule by about an hour and a half as Iberia had said in a statement that the flight was scheduled to depart at 06:00. FlightAware also noted the delay, confirming the departure time was initially planned for 06:00 with an arrival time of 13:22 in Doha.
EC-NIS was on the ground at DOH for a little over an hour before it departed again to continue to Madrid. The jet took off at 16:02 and arrived at Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD) six hours and 13 minutes later at 21:15.
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"Very proud"
Before departing from SYD, the captain, a 33-year veteran, congratulated the team in an announcement on the aircraft's PA system.
“I would like to give a warm welcome on behalf of myself and my crew, and overall we are all very proud to transport you all. We are thankful for all the dreams you all are making come true for this country. Thankful for the chance to win the World Cup, for what this triumph would signify for us, not just for women sports but for all of society.”
250 passengers were onboard, including the team, their families, and sponsors. To celebrate the win, Iberia said it offered a special service onboard with cava and cake. The airline also gifted the players with the Iberia Plus card, its loyalty program card that allows frequent flyers to accumulate Avios that can be cashed in for flights and other services and use elite points to upgrade to higher card levels.
"A historic moment"
This is not the first time the carrier has transported its home team following a victory. In 2010, Iberia brought the world cup from South Africa.
"We had the privilege to bring home the cup from Africa, and today we complete the list of achievements with another great victory," the captain said. "What we achieved in Australia, a historic moment that we love to share with all of you."
The airline specifically deployed EC-NIS for the trip to and from Madrid. The aircraft is named Talento a Bordo, a tribute to the world champions. The name is also the title of Iberia's sponsorship of the Royal Spanish Football Federation and its commitment to travel responsibilities of the men's and women's teams until 2026.
Source: Flightradar24.com, FlightAware