Skirmantas Strimaitis takes a selfie onboard a Boeing 737-800 airplane, taking off from Vilnius, Lithuania, March 16, 2019, as the only passenger aboard. (Photo: AP)
A Lithuanian man flying to Italy got a pleasant surprise when he boarded the plane: He was the only passenger on the Boeing 737-800.
Skirmantas Strimaitis, who was flying from capital Vilnius to the northern Italian city of Bergamo for a skiing holiday March 16, had the whole plane — which can usually sit up to 188 people — to himself. The only others onboard were two pilots and five crew members.
The Novaturas travel agency said it had chartered the plane to fly a group home from Italy, and to avoid flying empty, one-way tickets were sold. Only one person bought one.
Strimaitis told The Associated Press Tuesday the flight, which lasted more than two hours, was “a once in the lifetime experience.”