BOSTON – The Dodgers returned to Los Angeles early Thursday morning as World Series champions. Without the help of the New England Patriots, they wouldn’t have made it home.

The Dodgers spent much of their Wednesday night partying in the Bronx after a thrilling comeback in Game 5 of the Fall Classic against the New York Yankees. Los Angeles overcame a 5-0 deficit in the fifth inning, winning 7-6, to claim the series in five games.

Once they were done spraying champagne and celebrating at Yankee Stadium, the Dodgers headed to the airport for their cross-country trip home. They got help from the six-time Super Bowl champion and flew home from New York in one of two Patriots team planes.

At least one of the AirKrafts flew a championship trophy this year. Since the Patriots are 2-6 this season, there’s a good chance the team won’t be flying to Super Bowl LVIX in New Orleans in February.

Why did the Dodgers use the Patriots team plane?

The answer is quite simple and boring. The Dodgers went through the company that charters the Patriots planes when they are not being used by the team, the Patriots’ public relations team told WBZ-TV.

So it had nothing to do with the Boston-New York rivalry or the Patriots supporting a team that was beating up the Yankees. The Patriots did not need the plane this week, although the team does have a road game in Tennessee this weekend.

The Patriots team plane isn’t just for the Patriots

Obviously, the Patriots team planes aren’t just for the Patriots to get to and from games. Robert Kraft owns two 767s, and it’s not uncommon for the planes (sorry, AirKrafts) to be used for something other than ferrying players to a game. Kraft has used the aircraft for many charities since purchasing them in 2017.

In 2018, one of the planes was used to fly injured Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students and families of the school shooting victims to the “March For Our Lives” event in Washington, DC Kraft left a Patriots cap and a letter on each seat, expressing the team’s support for the movement.

In 2020, a Patriots plane went to Shenzhen, China to pick it up and bring 1.2 million N95 masks back to Massachusetts during the coronavirus pandemic.