BOSTON — It isn’t every day that the New England Patriots logo is a welcomed site in New York, but as the COVID-19 crisis grows, a tractor-trailer unit emblazoned with the Patriots’ logo will arrive in New York City today with a special delivery that will push sports rivalries to the back burner.
The truck departed from Boston Logan International Airport with a load of 300,000 N95 masks for health care workers serving on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic in one of the nation’s most affected areas.
This special delivery follows Patriots owner Robert Kraft utilizing the team’s plane and flight crew for a trip to China to pick up 1.2 million masks, which are to be distributed to various hospitals in and around Massachusetts, as well as this special shipment to New York City.
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker, Kraft and several others worked together to arrange the use of the plane and the distribution of the highly coveted masks.
“Tonight’s arrival of a major shipment of N95 masks on the Patriots’ plane was a significant step in our work to get front-line workers the equipment they need,” Baker said in a Tweet once the plane landed. “And it’s an example of how collaboration and partnership can lead to real solutions during these challenging times.”
In a statement released to ESPN, Kraft said he and his family are honored to be a part of this “humanitarian mission.”
“We knew that purchasing greatly-needed N95 masks and providing the Patriots plane to expedite their delivery to local hospitals would immediately help protect our courageous healthcare professionals,” Kraft said. “Multiple organizations across the public and private sectors, all of which were in lockstep with Gov. Charlie Baker’s visionary leadership, worked together to execute this mission with the purpose of helping save lives.”
The truck is receiving a police escort along the way with the Massachusetts State Police following the truck for the entire route, according to MSP’s Facebook post. Along the route, MSP cruisers will be joined periodically by police from Rhode Island State Police, Connecticut State Police, and police agencies from New York.
For more details about the Patriots’ plane specifications and events leading up to this special mission, click here.
Wendy Miller holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism and a master’s degree in strategic communications. Wendy has been a journalist and editor for nearly 15 years and has specialized in niche publications for the past eight years. Wendy draws her love for the trucking industry from growing up as a trucker’s daughter.
