A 'flight to nowhere' that offered Aussies views of super blood moon

A rare super blood moon graced the night skies on May 26 and the special phenomenon was enjoyed from various parts of the world. However, for some Australians, the view was more magnificent and up-close than others.

While lunar events like a supermoon and eclipses are common, it is uncommon to witness these occurring simultaneously as they did on May 26.

A Qantas ‘flight to nowhere’ ferried Australians around the sky for 3 hours, offering ethereal views of the crimson satellite.

Read more: Lunar Eclipse: How to watch in case you missed it

The tickets for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner flight which carried 180 lucky passengers ranged from $386 (for an economy seat) to $1,160 (for a business-class seat), CNN reported.

The tickets sold out in just 2.5 minutes!

This arrangement by Qantas worked out for both the airline, which had been struggling financially much like many other airlines due to the Covid-19 pandemic and for Australians who had no scope for any travel outside of the bubble-arrangement between Australia and New Zealand.

Qantas teamed up with astronomer Dr Vanessa Moss and chalked out a flight route over the Pacific, keeping in mind the trajectory of the rising moon and the timing of the total eclipse, according to CNN.

"Individually, a super moon and a total lunar eclipse aren't so rare, but when you combine the two, it can be quite rare," Moss, who was also on board, providing commentary, was quoted saying by CNN.

Moss added that the next super moon to grace Aussie skies will not be before 2033.

“It was wonderful, I think I've never seen [the moon] in such a way from land," a passenger, Abdullah Khurram, told CNN.

Another passenger, Rory Ding, said, "there was a very deep red glow to the moon, it was vibrant detailed and captivating".

Ding reckons "flights to nowhere" are a "win-win."

"The airlines get to keep their aircraft in the sky and staff employed…From a passenger perspective, it's a great way to feel that sense of excitement you used to get when you were travelling overseas on a long-awaited trip”, Ding added, saying ‘flights to nowhere’ were a win-win.