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Aircraft passengers treated to stunning view of event
By Winny Wang |
July 23, 2009, Thursday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
SOME air passengers and crew yesterday experienced a breath-taking view of the total solar eclipse.
"Our flight took off at 9:08am from Wuhan to Shanghai and we saw the full solar blackout about 9:26am," said an air attendant of China Eastern Airlines.
"During this period, the sky was still blue but clouds turned dark and we could see golden lines across the sky with stars around," she said.
"It was an amazing scene and while passengers were excited, they were well behaved."
A China Southern Airlines attendant also enjoyed the event with passengers on a morning flight from Guangzhou to Shanghai.
"We departed at 8:30am and only saw a partial eclipse during the trip," said the attendant, surnamed Hu.
"People took a lot of pictures and some of them had changed their flight schedules so they could see the eclipse. We offered special glasses to passengers and reminded them of potential safety hazards.
"But the sunlight was so dazzling that passengers couldn't stare at it for long, even with the glasses."
Although the sky did not turn black during the China Southern flight, the aircraft was still in night-flying mode for the sake of safety.
"The sun appeared at the right side during the flight and we arranged suitable seats for some passengers who were on the other side," Hu said.
In the cockpit, crew members used three layers of shading plates and flight sunglasses to watch the eclipse.
"I saw a solar eclipse on the ground in 1975, but observing it from an aircraft was clearer," said Wang Zhifeng, captain of the flight.
A Civil Aviation Administration of China official said all flights ran normally during the eclipse.
"Our flight took off at 9:08am from Wuhan to Shanghai and we saw the full solar blackout about 9:26am," said an air attendant of China Eastern Airlines.
"During this period, the sky was still blue but clouds turned dark and we could see golden lines across the sky with stars around," she said.
"It was an amazing scene and while passengers were excited, they were well behaved."
A China Southern Airlines attendant also enjoyed the event with passengers on a morning flight from Guangzhou to Shanghai.
"We departed at 8:30am and only saw a partial eclipse during the trip," said the attendant, surnamed Hu.
"People took a lot of pictures and some of them had changed their flight schedules so they could see the eclipse. We offered special glasses to passengers and reminded them of potential safety hazards.
"But the sunlight was so dazzling that passengers couldn't stare at it for long, even with the glasses."
Although the sky did not turn black during the China Southern flight, the aircraft was still in night-flying mode for the sake of safety.
"The sun appeared at the right side during the flight and we arranged suitable seats for some passengers who were on the other side," Hu said.
In the cockpit, crew members used three layers of shading plates and flight sunglasses to watch the eclipse.
"I saw a solar eclipse on the ground in 1975, but observing it from an aircraft was clearer," said Wang Zhifeng, captain of the flight.
A Civil Aviation Administration of China official said all flights ran normally during the eclipse.
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