Stunning photos taken from the cockpit of an airliner (12 photos)

These beautiful photographs were taken by Dutch pilot Christiaan van Heijst and his friend Daan Krans. They founded Amazing Aviation, a company specializing in cockpit photography. These images are a selection of the best from their portfolio, taken during flights over various cities and countries, from Toronto to India and China.







"When you encounter such a riot of nature during a flight, you immediately begin to feel so small, so insignificant compared to this wild, raging energy," says Christian.

This photo was taken during a flight between Beijing and Shanghai. It shows a cloud illuminated by lightning.

"Our instruments detected this cloud just a few minutes before the photo was taken. As we got closer, we had to deviate 10 kilometers off course because, while it was beautiful, it still posed a significant threat to the aircraft," Christian said.



This photo was taken in the skies over Canada during a flight from Chicago to Amsterdam. Christian and his colleague Luca had to deal with a terrible thunderstorm, and then the Northern Lights were the icing on the cake.



"Creating such stunning photographs and sharing them with the world, allowing everyone to see this beauty, is a tremendous honor for me," Christian admitted.



"The beautiful northern lights in the Canadian sky, illuminated from below by several thunderstorms and lightning, are one of the most beautiful sights I've ever seen," Christian shared.



This is what the Milky Way looks like from the cockpit of an airplane flying over the Sinai Peninsula (Egypt).



This photo was taken from the cockpit of a Boeing 747 cargo plane flying over India.



Christian began training to become a pilot at the age of 14. "From the very beginning of my career, I was firmly convinced that I simply had to capture the unique atmosphere of the beautiful views I observed from the cockpit," he says.





"Trying to take a good photo can often feel like hard and thankless work, but I still strive to take great pictures for my audience to accurately convey the feelings I experience when I'm flying," Christian added.



"My colleagues support me, because now they, too, have the opportunity to show their families and friends all the beauty we see every day from our workplaces."