Moonlight and aurora over Prince William Sound from a 747

1146
April 22, 2020
Alaska

Moonlight and aurora over Prince William Sound from a 747 cockpit.

Another stunning photo from 747 pilot Christiaan van Heijst.

SEE: Stunning images of Himalayas 

Christiaan takes up the story:

“Cruising along Anchorage’s Northern Lights Boulevard, this time by plane and quite literally.

Glaciers, mountains, whales, taildraggers, halibut, Alaskan Amber and views that leave even the most unconcerned visitor breathless.

This specific southern part of Alaska’s mountainous coastline is one of the most spectacular nature reserves I’ve ever had the chance to visit: countless glaciers, fearsome mountains and wildlife scenes that seem to come straight from a National Geographic documentary.

I was fortunate to do some whale-watching & glacier tours here with colleagues, road-tripped across the scenic highways of the Kenai Peninsula, to Whittier and Seward by myself or with friends, flew with a small plane across the rough and unforgiving Denali landscapes and witnessed the Alaskan magic both by day, night, dawn and dusk from the comfort of my 747 cockpit.

Every single second of those trips was wonderful and fascinating, absorbing the impressions from a place on Earth where nature defines the life of man, instead of the other way around.

I profoundly miss Alaska, though I’m sure I’ll be back again one day soon. Checking up on my awesome friends there, making sure the local beers still taste good, renting a car and heading ‘out there’ by myself with my camera in reach.

Mountains that dominate the view from the city of Anchorage, wildlife roaming into the streets whenever they please, bears on the hunt for food around the airport.
The Final Frontier, the wild that already starts before you leave the city of Anchorage. I love it.

I look at the moon-lit glaciers and clouds below, mesmerise at the glowing aurora above. The raw beauty of mother nature, combined with one of the most profound and underappreciated achievements of 20th-century achievements: aviation. And at its pinnacle the glorious 747.

Yes, I am biased and I don’t care.

Good luck Alaska, take care, stay safe and I cross my fingers everything will be back to normal again soon. Love from the Netherlands.”

Christiaan is one of the world’s leading aviation photographers and more of his work and more close encounter (s) can be found here.

You can follow Christiaan on Instagram here: @jpcvanheijst