Spanish airline Iberia is set to livestream the total solar eclipse from 10,000 metres in the air as it charters a special flight.

On 12 August, Europe will experience a total solar eclipse, with Spain falling into the “path of totality”: a narrow corridor where the moon blocks the sun completely.

To mark the occasion, Iberia has organised a special flight to observe the astronomical event high in the sky.

While the flight is not open to general passengers, Iberia will be livestreaming the event on its social media channels, putting its new high-speed Starlink wifi to the test.

Iberia is following the lead of many airlines by introducing Elon Musk’s Starlink, which uses a network of thousands of low Earth orbit satellites to provide high-speed broadband.

The Spanish airline is progressively introducing the internet connectivity service across its entire fleet.

On board the chartered eclipse flight, which will depart from Madrid’s airport at 6.45pm, will be a group of scientific researchers led by astronomer Miquel Serra-Ricart, the scientific director of Light Bridges and a researcher at the Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands.

“Observing from cruising altitude will allow us to have a clear view of the solar corona, free from cloud cover and other atmospheric phenomena that can make ground-based observation more difficult,” says Mr Serra-Ricart.

From the aircraft, the researchers will also be able to observe the surroundings of the sun, including the apparent position of Venus, Mercury and other visible stars.

Despite general passengers not being allowed on this special observation flight, if you are due to fly across northern and eastern Spain, including the Balearic Islands, around 7.30pm to 9.30pm, you could be in with a chance of catching the eclipse.

While the path of totality will sweep across the Arctic Ocean, then over parts of Greenland, Iceland and Portugal, this upcoming eclipse will be the first one visible from the Iberian Peninsula since 1912.

Read more: When is the solar eclipse 2026 and where is best to view it from?