A380 da Qantas Airways
Qantas Airways/Airbus
Paul Spijkers, GFDL, via Wikimedia Commons
Australian Qantas Airways is offering a series of “nowhere” flights, which actually give passengers the opportunity to watch a 'show' of celestial phenomena, such as the super moon, the lunar eclipse, in addition to the northern lights, more than 40 thousand feet high. The flight departs from Australia, performs the circuit, returns to land at the same place and promises to provide fantastic views.
The purpose of the tour is to collect revenue, a strategy that apparently works, as the tickets for that flight sold out in 2.5 minutes, a record time, according to the company. Since tickets have run out, there is a waiting list, which is also closed.
Due to the restrictions caused by the pandemic, people are prevented from traveling and this would be an opportunity to take a fun trip without exposing yourself to greater risks. The idea of "u200b"u200bsome flights of this type is to fly over places where it is not possible to land or which are still unable to receive visitors.
The most recent Qantas flight in this series of trips to “nowhere” aims to enable passengers to experience, photograph and watch - close by - the eclipse of late May. The aircraft will perform maneuvers that make it possible for everyone to see the phenomenon, with the on-board services and meals normally offered by Qantas and with the same number of passengers and crew.
Ticket prices can range from $ 386 to $ 5,439 depending on class.
According to Qanta, work is underway with astronomer Dr. Vanessa Moss to design “the ideal flight path over the Pacific Ocean”, in addition to also having the astronomer on board to entertain passengers with information about it of the phenomenon, which will take place on May 26, dubbed by NASA “lunar eclipse of super blood”. 'Super', since in that period the full moon will be close to Earth, making it brighter and apparently bigger; and ‘blood’, as it is expected to appear in a reddish hue due to sunlight filtered through the Earth’s atmosphere.
This will be the only total lunar eclipse in 2021, and could be seen in Australia, New Zealand and some locations on the west coast of the United States and the Pacific. And, of course, it will also be seen by passengers on the Qanta Airways flight.
The aircraft chosen for this flight is the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, because of its wide windows that will allow a greater contemplation of the phenomenon.
The flight will last three hours, departing from Sydney and, after flying over the local port, will fly beyond the clouds to admire the eclipse.
Last year, the company's first flight to nowhere, which took place in October, sold out in 10 minutes. According to Doctor Fiona Downes, passenger of that first flight, the trip is “a unique experience in life”. She acquired a ticket in business class through unused points that she owned.
The company received harsh criticism for promoting this type of trip, as it would be an unnecessary fuel burn in a time of severe climate crisis. The flight was seen as "essentially the definition of a meaningless trip" by Friends of the Earth, according to a spokesman for the institution. The company has committed to offset all carbon emissions on all flights of this type.
Currently, other airlines also offer flights “nowhere”, such as Hong Kong Express, All Nipon Airways and EVA Air.
Gabriela Ramos
Gabriela is the latest addition to the editorial team of our website, having provided us with her solid background in editing, publishing and photography, and her interest and training in aviation history and historiography. His good taste and common sense and great cleverness and sagacity in the selection of themes and materials greatly enriched our vocabulary and narrative style. Gabriela brought unusual predicates and came to stay, helping to point the way of success of our portal.
   
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