ROMULUS, Mich. (WXYZ) — Instead of being on the ground, some people had the opportunity to go up in the sky to see the eclipse above the clouds.
For the very first time, Delta Air Lines planned two flights to fly along the path of totality. Both took off from Texas and landed in Detroit.
From outside the gate in Dallas to the gate in Austin, there were two historic flights with dozens of passengers who were ready to see the total solar eclipse from the sky.
“This is my third eclipse, your second," Seth Medlin said as he motioned toward his wife. "I think we're hooked.”
Medlin and his wife Jeannie Lucas traveled from their home in Morehead City, North Carolina to Dallas, Texas, to watch the eclipse. However, with clouds in the forecast, they found last-minute tickets on one of Delta’s eclipse flights to go above the clouds and take it all in.
Luckily, Medlin got a window seat to see the eclipse.
"Jeannie was like here on my lap and the young man on the aisle was basically lying on my lap," Medlin said. "It was definitely a congenial group of people, not your normal airplane crowd."
While many went out of their way to be on the plane, Lisa Hargus from Auburn Hills was just simply flying home from her niece's wedding in Austin and by chance, ended up on the flight of a lifetime.
“The joy, everybody was so happy and everybody was just so friendly," Hargus said. "You just don't see that on flights.”
That atmosphere was what every passenger on both planes talked about — smiles ear to ear looking out the window and sharing seats so others could see. Even one couple on the Austin flight got engaged during it all.
“We were in totality about 10 minutes, so the pilot, they did the loop then banked the plane so people on both sides could get a view out the windows,” said Jerome Johnson from Cincinnati, who was on the Dallas flight. "It got very dark very quickly. It was really, really eerie. Really eerie. Then just as quickly about 10 minutes later, it was a normal sunny day again. So, it was amazing."
“Just being there with everybody else and seeing everybody else be able to experience it, it was worth it,” said Donna Lally from East China Township, who was also on the Dallas flight.
“It's unlike anything else that ever happens," Medlin said. "It gets dark so quick and then when it's over, it’s over.”
While this eclipse may be over, Medlin and his wife are already planning for the next one. However next time, they say they'll stick to viewing it on the ground.
“It wasn't ideal from the aircraft because you can only see out of one side and the pilot had to turn to see the other side, but we were above the clouds,” Medlin said. “I think in '26 it's in Spain, '27 in Egypt and '28 in Australia... As long as we’re healthy enough, we’ll do it.”
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