Delta's flight from Austin to Detroit onboard a small-ish plane with "extra large windows" will make for one unique eclipse viewing experience
We’re only a couple of months away from the 2024 total solar eclipse crossing the U.S., and Delta Airlines is offering a special flight so you can see it from the air when the big day comes on Monday, April 8. Delta’s eclipse flight will take off from Austin, Texas and land in Detroit, Michigan, and it will allow passengers to see the eclipse in its totality, according to a news release put out by the airline.
Flight 1218 will depart from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport at 12:15 p.m. CST and land at Detroit Metropolitan Airport at 4:20 p.m. EST. The flight will take place on an Airbus A200-300, which features extra large windows, according to Delta. Depending on its configuration, the A200-300 can seat between 130 and 160 passengers. If you aren’t one of the lucky few who will be on board the flight from Austin to Detroit on April 8, Delta has some alternatives:
Delta says this is the last total eclipse that’ll pass over North America until 2044, and it’s going to last more than twice as long as the one that happened back in 2017 with a path that is nearly twice as wide.
“This flight is the result of significant collaboration and exemplifies the close teamwork Delta is known for — from selecting an aircraft with larger windows to determining the exact departure time from Austin and the experiences at the gate and in the air,” Eric Beck, Managing Director of Domestic Network Planning, said in a statement. “Thanks to teams across the company, the idea of viewing a total eclipse from the air will become a reality for our customers.”
According to NASA, parts of Michigan will experience the total solar eclipse as it crosses 13 states. Residents in southeast Michigan can view its totality just before 3:15 p.m. Eastern time.
Before it enters the United States, it will cross over parts of Mexico. The pathway continues through North America in Canada, where it will exit the continent on the Atlantic coast of Newfoundland.
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