Facebook group charters All Nippon Airways A380 for flight to nowhere

Ninety-minute sightseeing flight costs from £222

All Nippon Airways (Getty Images)

A Facebook group has banded together to charter an Airbus A380, the world’s largest passenger plane, for a one-off “flight to nowhere”.

The group, which consists of frequent flyers with Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) and has 22,000 members, approached the airline to request a 90-minute sightseeing trip – and the airline agreed.

The flight will be taking off and landing at Narita Airport in greater Tokyo, reports One Mile at a Time.

Passengers onboard will be served drinks and receive a special certificate for participating.

Tickets for the one-off service were sold this week on a first-come, first-served basis.

Fares ranged from 30,000 JPY (£222) for economy class to 100,000 JPY (£740) for first class – a fairly steep price-tag for a short-haul flight that doesn’t stop anywhere.

Premium economy seats were priced at 50,000 JPY (£370), while business-class tickets cost 70,000 JPY (£518).

It’s far from the first “flight to nowhere” to take-off during the pandemic.

Global travel restrictions gave birth to the idea of sightseeing flights for aviation fans, and ANA has already operated its own version – an Airbus A380 jumbo jet, normally used for services to Honolulu, was commandeered for a 90-minute Hawaiian-themed flight “experience”.  

Other carriers have offered their own take: Taiwan’s EVA Air used one of its planes emblazoned with Hello Kitty livery for a special Fathers’ Day flight in August; Tigerair Taiwan flew from Taipei to Taipei, via a circle over South Korea’s Jeju Island; and Qantas announced in September that its own “flight to nowhere” around Australia was one of its fastest-ever selling offerings, with all tickets snapped up in under 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, environmental campaigners have condemned the practice.

“It’s a real indication of our addiction to flying that we would board a flight to nowhere,” Anna Hughes, director of Flight Free UK, told The Independent.

“We’re often told that we can’t live without flights because of what they give us in terms of experiencing and understanding other places and cultures. But all these flights give us is a shedload of emissions – something we can well do without at this crucial time for the climate.”