Was it Father Christmas? Aircraft with SANTA1 call sign spotted in skies over Norway and Sweden on journey from London to Arctic Circle
- Aircraft with SANTA1 call sign was spotted over Norway and Sweden
- British Airways plane was flying to Rovaniemi in northern Finland
- Christmas charter was full of families who were visiting Santa Claus
Is this Santa and his reindeer taking their sleigh for a test flight with just three weeks to go until Christmas Day?
An aircraft with the call sign SANTA1 was spotted flying over Norway and Sweden on its way to the Arctic Circle this week.
But it turns out it wasn’t the big man’s sleigh – it was a British Airways plane ferrying passengers to see Santa Claus himself in snowy Lapland in northern Finland.
British Airways uses the call sign SANTA1 for Christmas-themed journeys
An aircraft with the call sign SANTA1 was spotted over Norway and Sweden on its way to the Arctic Circle
The Airbus A320 flew from London Gatwick Airport to Rovaniemi on Tuesday to give the lucky group a chance to meet Mr and Mrs Claus and his elves and reindeer.
The Christmas charter was full of families who were paying a visit to the Santa Claus Village amusement park.
It was using a special call sign – as opposed to a standard one starting with ‘BA’ – because it was on a Christmas-themed journey.
Families were travelling to Rovaniemi, in northern Finland, to meet Santa Claus
British Airways owns the call signs SANTA1 and SANTA2, which are used for flights with a Christmas theme
A British Airways spokesperson said: ‘We have a scheduled timetable and sometimes there’s a chance that someone or a company has chartered an aircraft - a particular flight with a Christmas theme or purpose.
‘British Airways own the call signs SANTA1 and SANTA2. So we are able to name flights whenever it's appropriate.
‘It's great that we can use these to make flights around this time of year that extra bit more special.’
Most watched News videos
- Pro-Palestine flags at University of Michigan graduation ceremony
- Suella: Plan's not working and local election results are terrible
- Poet Laureate Simon Armitage's Coronation poem 'An Unexpected Guest'
- Police arrest man in Preston on suspicion of aiding boat crossings
- Benjamin Netanyahu rejects ceasefire that would 'leave Hamas in power'
- Zelensky calls on Ukrainians on Orthodox Easter to unite in prayer
- Moment pro-Palestine activists stage Gaza protest outside Auschwitz
- Rescue team smash through roof to save baby in flooded Brazil
- 'I am deeply concerned': PM Rishi Sunak on the situation in Rafah
- Huge street brawl explodes in the street between groups of men
- Moment buffalo is encircled by pride of lions and mauled to death
- Deliveroo customer calls for jail after rider bit off his thumb