Norwich City bypasses Flybe

English Norwich City used a charter a flight to attend an away match, despite being sponsored by low cost airline Flybe.

Fans were waiting in the departure lounge of Norwich Airport for a scheduled Flybe flight to Exeter Tuesday, but the team and manager Nigel Worthington boarded a 30-seat Eastern Airways aircraft.

John Tilson, treasurer of the Norwich City Independent Supporters Association, was one of about half a dozen fans waiting to leave for Exeter, ahead of the team's match against Torquay Wednesday. He was stunned when the team walked through in front of them and airport staff.

"Anyone who follows football would think 'what on earth are they doing that for?' It wasn't the case that there weren't any seats on our plane - there were only 42 people on the plane," Tilson said. "I'm just absolutely amazed from a public relations point of view."

The cash-strapped club signed a lucrative sponsorship deal with Flybe earlier this year, as its three-year deal with Proton and Lotus Cars came to an end. The agreement covers two seasons, but there is an option to extend it beyond the 2007-2008 campaign.

"On the face of it, it appears to be an extravagance that was not required," Tilson said.

A spokesman for Norwich City said that, when air travel was used, the club had Flybe transport players to matches when possible.

Flybe transported the team to Scotland for their preseason tour this summer.

"However, such arrangements are dependent on when Flybe flights are scheduled," said the club spokesman. "In the case of the midweek match to Torquay, Flybe's schedules did not tally with when the team wanted to journey to Torquay after training on the Tuesday. The need to return immediately following the final whistle the following evening was not possible due to the restrictions on night flights arriving back at Norwich International Airport.

"In this case, the team travelled on a chartered flight and returned via Stansted."

Source: euFootball.BIZ © Copyright 2006 - All rights reserved.