Australia's Qantas and Antarctica Flights are bringing back their sightseeing trips over Antarctica, which take an average of 12.5 hours and arrive back where they started. They will take place on Boeing 787 Dreamliner planes and are only open to passengers from Australia, where they are considered to be domestic flights.
About three hours into the flight, passengers can expect to catch sight of the continent's sea ice and icebergs. Approximately four hours will be spent over Antarctica and the remaining four hours traveling home. Those on board will enjoy two full meals, snacks and complimentary bar service during the flight, and educational movies about Antartica will be shown en route.
These flights have been operating for 26 years, and every passenger (excluding Explorer Economy Class) is allocated two boarding passes. At the halfway point of the flight, an announcement is made asking passengers to move to the seat listed on their second boarding pass to ensure that everyone gets a turn in a window seat or the one beside it. The airline says that, while over Antarctica, most passengers get up from their seats and move about the aircraft, allowing everyone on board to enjoy excellent viewing opportunities.
The aircraft flies in long sweeping 'figure 8s' over various points of interest to allow the sights to be viewed from both sides of the aircraft. The organisers of the trips say that additional health and safety measures will be implemented due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The flight options for the 2020/2021 season are listed here.
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