Santa is all set and ready to go for his Christmas Eve flight to Australia — all the official forms and documents have been submitted, and he’s cleared to fly. All that’s left is for him to pack his sleigh with everyone’s presents!
Here’s Santa’s official flight plan for his trip to the households of Australia, submitted to Air Services Australia:
Santa’s official aircraft ID this year is Sleigh Rider 1, and here’s how he’s getting across the country. Hobart is the first capital city that Santa is coming past tonight to drop off presents, and his last port of call is Perth — but still with enough time to scoot down chimneys and leave gifts for all the lucky kids!
Just like all pilots Santa must log his flight plan with Airservices before he takes off. This will let our controllers know the route Santa and his reindeer will be flying as they visit every house in Australia. His flight plan will also help air traffic control make sure no other flights get in Santa’s way during his most important flight!
Santa’s flight will begin on Christmas Eve when he leaves the North Pole and travels down the International Date Line into the Southern Hemisphere. After visiting New Zealand he will enter Australian airspace near the coast of Tasmania. The lucky children in Hobart will be among the first ones in Australia to receive their presents, so make sure you get your cookies and carrots out nice and early.
Santa will then head north over mainland Australia with his sleigh zigzagging over every state and territory, making the most of Australia’s five different time zones, before finishing up over Western Australia. This is where he will say goodbye to the Australian air traffic controllers for another year and head north up to visit Papua New Guinea and Indonesia.
The weather is looking pretty good for Santa’s journey, too: