Sky high view of your home
IF leaving behind your earthly troubles and taking off into the wild blue yonder sounds like a perfect afternoon, Baginton could be your new go-to destination.
Coventry Airport is now a base for flight-sharing service Wingly. The online platform matches pilots with passengers, who can join a flight to experience the thrill of aviation.
Pilots offer their round-trip leisure flights or one-way journeys to airfields around the country in their own planes or ones they lease.
Wingly press officer Ella Armstrong said: “Wingly connects passengers with pilots that have empty seats, so passengers experience the joys of flying in a private plane, while the pilots get to share the costs and their passion for flying with others.
“Anyone can enjoy the thrill of private flying in a very affordable way – people can rediscover their village from a different point of view, seeing their house from the sky. Or go to exotic destinations for the day in a private plane for many times cheaper than the cost of a single journey 2nd class train ticket.”
Passengers can travel from Coventry Airport to destinations such as the Isle of Wight, Wellingborough or Cambridge.
Sightseeing flights around Warwickshire and Oxfordshire are also possible.
Just like other ‘sharing-economy’ platforms, the site lets users filter their preferred journeys and read previous passenger and pilot reviews.
With some flexibility on your departure time and destination, you could snap up an exhilarating aviation experience for a reasonable price. As the price is a share of the costs of the flight, costs are comparable to an intercity railway ticket.
Pilots are not allowed to sell seat space for personal profit, but after a change in European aviation rules last year, they can now advertise vacant seats.