New England Patriots Jet Brings 1.2 Million N95 Masks From China

The New England Patriots’ air game is better than ever.

The team jet picked up 1.2 million N95 masks in Shenzhen, China, Thursday to bring back to Massachusetts for the state’s fight against the coronavirus pandemic, according to Boston.com and The Wall Street Journal.

The plane, dispatched by team owner Robert Kraft and his son, team president Jonathan Kraft, was permitted on the tarmac for just a few hours so workers in full-body suits could load the equipment.

Gov. Charlie Baker tweeted a photo of the aircraft and wrote: “No days off. Thanks to some serious teamwork, Massachusetts is set to receive over 1 million N95 masks for our front-line workers. Huge thanks to the Krafts and several dedicated partners for making this happen.”

“In today’s world, those of us who are fortunate to make a difference have a significant responsibility to do so with all the assets we have available to us,” Kraft told The Wall Street Journal.

The governor had struck an acquisition deal with Chinese manufacturers weeks ago but couldn’t arrange for the transfer of the masks, the Journal reported. In stepped a friend, Jonathan Kraft, who’s also the chairman of the board of Massachusetts General Hospital, to help arrange for the team plane to become a cargo carrier.

The National Guard was to transport the supplies to a stockpile in Marlborough. 

Massachusetts has reported more than 7,700 coronavirus cases and at least 122 deaths, according to the state’s website. But not all the masks are headed to the state’s medical facilities.

Baker pledged to send 300,000 to New York, the country’s COVID-19 epicenter, the Journal wrote.