Iberia operated a special eclipse observation flight on 12 August with an Airbus A321XLR, flying as IB1473 from Madrid-Barajas to position the aircraft over northern Spain for views of the total solar eclipse. The mission departed at 18:45 local time and kept the aircraft above 10,000 metres to improve visibility for passengers and scientists on board.
The flight followed a planned route over Palencia and was livestreamed from the cabin through Iberia’s Starlink-based connectivity system. IB1473 was chosen as a nod to the birth year of Nicolaus Copernicus, while the aircraft, registered EC-ORZ, completed the operation in 2 hours 43 minutes.
A scientific team from the Shelios project joined the flight to study the solar corona and other eclipse phenomena from the air. The operation reflected the rare viewing conditions over northern Spain, where the eclipse path offered one of the best observation points in the country.