Passengers onboard an easyJet flight were given the experience of a lifetime yesterday evening after the pilot turned the plane 360 degrees to show them all the incredible Northern Lights. Pictures taken by a flyer onboard the aircraft which was returning from Reykjavik to Manchester Airport captured the mesmerising hues of green, purple and pink splashed across the night sky.
The Met Office notified Brits of the best places to see the Aurora Borealis on Monday, with northern areas of England in with a good chance due to the higher likeliness of 'transitory cloud breaks'. Photographer Adam Groves, who had just returned from an engagement in Iceland, took to Twitter to share the snaps as he excitedly recalled the experience, the MEN reports.
He said: "We had been half expecting them as the aurora forecast was high, but low cloud cover in Iceland over the past week meant we didn’t see them from land. We were hoping to see them while we were out there but didn’t get the chance.
"We took off and half way into the flight the pilot turned all the lights off and the view was out the left window. We were sat on the right hand side and after two to three minutes the pilot switched back and did a 360 loop around for everyone to see."
Pictures taken on board the flight show passengers looking out of the window in awe as Adam, who goes by @aptgroves took quick snapshots of the beautiful view. The flight path was also recorded by FlightRadar, showing the route the plane took over the ocean and the exact spot where it loops in the air.
Northern Lights occur as a direct result of solar activity colliding with the Earth's atmosphere and they are most active during the Equinox and Solstice in March/April and September/October. According to the Met Office, the best weather conditions to see the lights are when the 'sky is dark and clear of any clouds'.
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