We flew from Christchurch directly into an aurora storm here s what happened next.
There was a quick huddle near a window, then somebody starting running down the aisle of the plane. Seeing running in a plane is unusual, but this isn’t a usual flight. We’re on an aurora hunter south of New Zealand, and an eager photographer is reporting his findings to the cockpit. Our hunt for the Southern Lights just got its first big clue. We re aboard an Air New Zealand 787, chartered by tour specialists Viva Expeditions. The travel agency was hit hard by Covid-19, so it decided to give Kiwis a long haul experience without leaving the country by starting aurora passenger flights. I was lucky enough to be aboard Viva’s first mission, and I’m going to take you behind the scenes of our extraordinary ten hours in the air.