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A pilot who has flown more than 750 times and visited more than 50 countries in just four years has shared the ‘really cool’ European city he’d recommend to holidaymakers

If you’re wondering where to jet off to for your next getaway, a pilot who has flown to more than 50 destinations might just have the answer.

There are plenty of beautiful cities, charming towns, and golden-sand coastal resorts scattered across Europe for that idyllic escape in the sunshine, and just a short flight from the UK. Yet with a sea of options, it can be hard to know exactly where to go. But fortunately for us, Wizz Air pilot Tom Copestake knows exactly what destination he’d suggest to travellers.

Speaking exclusively to the Mirror, Tom said: “My favourite destination is Split in Croatia, I absolutely adore it. It has a mix of Mediterranean vibes, old architecture and castles, which is really cool.”

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Flights to the sun-soaked city of Split start from £28.99 with Wizz Air, where visitors will be greeted with the 4th-century Diocletian’s Palace and lively seaside promenade. There’s a maze of narrow streets to wander around, ancient history to admire and nearby beaches to lap up the rays – you might even find yourself on the set of Game of Thrones while exploring the city.

The Wizz Air pilot, based at London Luton, also revealed an undiscovered destination that warrants a visit: Yerevan, the capital of Armenia. “I don’t think there’s any connectivity directly between the UK and Armenia, but we’re going to be the first people to do that, which is exciting.”

Wizz Air will welcome direct flights from London Luton Airport to Armenia this summer for the first time. The flights to Yerevan will launch on 12 June of this year, operating twice a week, with one-way fares starting from £36.99.

The pilot also added that Tirana, Albania, is another “undiscovered gem” and highly recommends that holidaymakers book a trip. Yet there’s one overlooked European destination Tom says tourists miss, but is well worth visiting, and flights start from just £26.99.

“I flew into Bilbao about two weeks ago – it’s a tremendous destination on the north coast. It was surrounded by what looked like amazing mountains or hills for hiking. I think there’s a lot of good walking in northern Spain,” Tom shared.

“I spoke to the ground handling agent in Bilbao, and he said how beautiful the area was and how we needed to stay and go exploring. There’s a place called San Sebastiá just down the road from Bilbao, which is apparently an amazing place to go and have a look at.”

After recommending Split, Tirana and Bilbao as go-to destinations, Tom offered a glimpse into life as a pilot. He acknowledged: “This is a customer service job that happens to be in the aviation industry, and I love the fact that each of the thousands of passengers I’ve flown has a story and a reason to travel. It might be for fun, to see family, or we have people who might be working in different countries. It’s really cool, and I love that so much.” He humbly added: “This job is a privilege”.

For more information on Wizz Air flights, or to book your next getaway, visit their website.

Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@reachplc.com

A KEEN traveller is determined to visit EVERY country that flies from his local airport – and is more than halfway there already.

Savvy jet-setter Neil Loft is attempting to tick off all 120 destinations that fly from Bristol Airport.

Follow The Sun’s award-winning travel team on Instagram and Tiktok for top holiday tips and inspiration @thesuntravel. 

So far, Neil has ticked off 86 locations offered by Bristol Airport, leaving him with 34 left – although he does have an advantage working as cabin crew.

But not all of his travelling is done through work. Neil also spends lots of his free time exploring the world – last year he managed to visit 21 destinations.

Neil has only upped his efforts this year visiting as many as three places in one day, which he managed to do for as little as £3.

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He travelled from Basel in Switzerland, to St Louis in France, and Weil am Rhein in Germany all within 24 hours.

Neil said: “It was quite straightforward, really. Without even realising, I had crossed the bridge and walked into a new country.”

On day two of his trip to Basel, Neil caught the tram to the French border, where he walked over to St Louis to enjoy a local delicacy: croque monsieur.

Neil then returned to Basel before hopping on a tram across the border to Weil am Rhein in Germany.

There, he had a beer at a rooftop bar before heading back to his Swiss hotel.

Despite travelling to three different countries in 24 hours, the entire day trip cost him just £3 thanks to the travel pass he got on arrival in Basel.

Neil explained: “It was shockingly easy. I took a bit of time in each to have a drink and a mooch about but you could have done all three countries in two or three hours if you wanted to.”

Other spots in Europe that Neil has visited include Zurich, Vilnius, Kaunas, Almeria, Bilbao, Turkey, Innsbruck, and Bucharest.

When it comes to being savvy with flights, Neil says his jobs as a holiday rep and then cabin crew for 10 years helped.

Through this, he knows how to get the best flight and pair them up with the hotels and transfers.

Neil added: “I am well on track to achieve [all 120 destinations]. I have only got a handful more to do.

“I have no commitments to hold me back, so I am just an intrepid traveller really.

“I have to go on my airline apps to remind myself where I am going some of the time. I just tend to see a deal and go book it.”

Northrop Grumman’s experimental XRQ-73 Series Hybrid Electric Propulsion AiRcraft Demonstration (SHEPARD) hybrid-electric drone has now taken to the skies. Newly released pictures show that the flying wing-type uncrewed aircraft’s design has also evolved since it first broke cover in 2024. A core goal of SHEPARD is to prove out high-efficiency and very quiet propulsion technology that could pave the way for new operational capabilities.

DARPA announced the XRQ-73 test flight, which was conducted in April from Edwards Air Force Base in California, in a press release today. The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) was also involved in the milestone event.

Scaled Composites, a ‘bleeding edge’ boutique aircraft design house and wholly-owned subsidiary of Northrop Grumman, has been heavily involved in the development of the XRQ-73. The drone evolved directly from the XRQ-72A, another Scaled Composites design developed for the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA), which TWZ was first to report on in detail.

“This milestone is not just about a single flight,” Air Force Lt. Col. Clark McGehee, the SHEPARD program manager at DARPA, said in a statement. “The architecture proven by the XRQ-73 paves the way for new types of mission systems and delivered effects. We look forward to advancing this technology through the flight test program and delivering new capabilities for our warfighters.”

“This flight is a step forward in demonstrating the military utility of hybrid-electric propulsion,” DARPA’s press release adds. “Hybrid electric propulsion architectures will drive the development of revolutionary new aircraft designs by offering a combination of fuel efficiency, reduced emissions, and enhanced operational flexibility.”

“Developed to advance propulsion technologies for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Series Hybrid Electric Propulsion AiRcraft Demonstration (SHEPARD) program, the XRQ-73 advances next-generation propulsion for lightweight autonomous aircraft,” Northrop Grumman said in its own brief press release. “The XRQ-73’s innovative hybrid-electric propulsion system combines fuel efficiency, reduced emissions and enhanced operational flexibility – enabling new mission possibilities and supporting the evolution of new aircraft designs.”

DARPA had originally hoped to see the XRQ-73 make its maiden flight before the end of 2024, and what caused the subsequent delay is unknown. TWZ has reached out to DARPA for more information. What is clear is that the XRQ-73’s design has changed in notable ways since 2024.

Most immediately eye-catching is the addition of two vertical stabilizers, one on top of each wing. They are positioned near, but not at the very tips of the wings. It is possible that these might be removed as flight testing expands. The preceding XRQ-72A design also had vertical wingtip stabilizers.

In addition to the two large air intakes on top of the central section of the fuselage, there is now another, much smaller auxiliary dorsal intake in between. Details about the exact configuration of the drone’s hybrid propulsion system remain limited. There are also at least two new black-colored blade antennas on top of the fuselage.

A fairing with what appears to be a forward-facing camera system is also now present at the front of the center of the fuselage. This is likely intended to at least provide visual inputs for control and additional situational awareness during flight testing. The fairing also sits in between two additional rectangular ‘nostril’ intakes. We have noted in the past that they could help cool the hybrid powerplant and the aircraft’s electronics, or help provide additional clean airflow to the powerplant during takeoff and landing.

The XRQ-73’s design looks to be otherwise unchanged. A large, faceted fairing, very likely intended as a sensor enclosure, is notably still present below the central section of the fuselage. Test instrumentation and other systems could also be installed in that space to support the drone’s ongoing development.

DARPA has shared some other information about the design in the past, as TWZ has previously reported:

“No details about the XRQ-73’s expected performance appear to have been released so far, but DARPA says it is a Group 3 uncrewed aerial system (UAS) weighing approximately 1,250 pounds, which will include “operationally representative … mission systems.” By the U.S. military’s definitions, a Group 3 UAS weighs between 55 and 1,320, can fly at altitudes between 3,500 and 18,000 feet, and has a top speed of between 100 and 250 knots.

At 1,250 pounds, the XRQ-73 is set to be substantially larger than the XRQ-72A, the requirements for which called for a drone weighing between 300 and 400 pounds. The XRQ-72A also had a 30-foot wingspan, a length of 11.2 feet measured from the nose to the ends of the wingtips, and a height of four feet when including the vertical wingtip stabilizers, according to schematics The War Zone previously obtained via the Freedom of Information Act.“

What the future might now hold for the XRQ-73 is unclear. DARPA has previously talked about wanting to demonstrate a capability that could be operationalized relatively quickly with SHEPARD. The “RQ” intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) designation is a clear reflection of that, although the drone could be configured to perform other missions. Hybrid-electric propulsion offers inherent advantages when it comes to reducing infrared and acoustic signatures, and the XRQ-73’s overall design has low-observable characteristics that could help it evade detection by radar.

However, a cursory review of DARPA’s proposed Fiscal Year 2027 budget does not appear to show a request for new funding for this effort. It is possible that it has been reorganized and/or rebranded, or has otherwise evolved in scale and/or scope, which is not uncommon for DARPA projects.

Last May, AFRL also awarded General Atomics a contract for a very similar-sounding “hybrid-electric propulsion ducted fan next-generation intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance/strike unmanned aerial system,” or GHOST. That deal was valued at just over $99 million.

“We’ve been promising something impressive related to hybrid-electric propulsion, and now I can’t talk about it anymore,” C. Mark Brinkley, a spokesperson for General Atomics, told TWZ at that time when asked for more information. “That’s how it goes with these things. Contrary to what you see on the news, the revolution won’t be televised.”

Other relevant hybrid-electric development efforts could be ongoing in the classified realm.

If nothing else, DARPA’s announcement today does show that work has continued on the XRQ-73 since 2024, and that the evolved design has now reached flight test.

Update: 4:46 PM EST –

DARPA has confirmed to TWZ that XRQ-73 flight testing began in April.

“X-plane programs are designed to push the extreme limits of aerospace engineering, integrating entirely unproven concepts and revolutionary designs,” Air Force Lt. Col. Clark McGehee, the SHEPARD program manager, also told TWZ in response to a question about why the first flight timeline was delayed. “As with the XRQ-73, this effort involved resolving complex, unforeseen technical challenges during ground testing and integration.”

“DARPA will continue maturing the hybrid electric propulsion system through a short flight test campaign currently underway,” Lt. Col. McGehee added.

Contact the author: joe@twz.com

A pilot who has flown more than 750 times has revealed there’s one European city which is a ‘tremendous destination’ that’s well worth visiting – and flights start from £26.99

A pilot who has flown more than 750 times and visited more than 50 countries in just four years has revealed the European city that holidaymakers miss.

When it comes to booking a sun-soaked getaway, many of us are on the lookout for those destinations that go a little under the radar. Whether it’s to escape the onslaught of tourist crowds, packed attractions and lengthy queues, or to simply wander around a quieter location and explore somewhere new.

There’s a catalogue of beautiful European cities, brimming with charm and character, that are well worth venturing beyond the typical holiday hotspots. Yet, it’s not always easy to know where to go. But luckily for us, Wizz Air pilot Tom Copestake knows exactly what destination he’d recommend to holidaymakers.

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Speaking exclusively to the Mirror, Tom said: “I flew into Bilbao about two weeks ago – it’s a tremendous destination on the north coast. It was surrounded by what looked like amazing mountains or hills for hiking. I think there’s a lot of good walking in northern Spain.”

He continued: “I spoke to the ground handling agent in Bilbao, and he said how beautiful the area was and how we needed to stay and go exploring. There’s a place called San Sebastiá just down the road from Bilbao, which is apparently an amazing place to go and have a look at.”

Bilbao is a vibrant and colourful port city in northern Spain, with towering green mountains and a winding river valley running through its core. It’s known for its Basque heritage, innovative architecture, and world-class art.

Its most famous landmark is the curved Guggenheim Museum, designed by Frank Gehry, known for its contemporary art exhibitions and the ‘Puppy’ statue that towers over the city. Yet, against its ultramodern architecture, there’s the historic old town of Casco Viejo, which is made up of ancient medieval streets, the grand Santiago Cathedral, and Mercado de la Ribera – one of Europe’s largest covered food markets.

The city has a renowned food scene, with its local tapas, known as pintxos, being a notable highlight, alongside its selection of fresh seafood. Bilbao is also packed with lively bars, buzzing restaurants and cafés, so visitors can savour the flavours of its incredible cuisine, and soak up its vibrant atmosphere.

Aside from visiting the Guggenheim Museum, notable attractions include the Museum of Fine Arts of Bilbao, Zubizuri Bridge, also known as the ‘White Bridge’, and Artxanda Funicular, a mountain cable car offering breathtaking views. Nearby is also the Bizkaia Bridge, the world’s first to carry people and traffic on a high suspended gondola, and it’s also a UNESCO World Heritage site.

And it might just be the perfect time to visit, as Wizz Air launched new routes from London Luton to Bilbao this year, with flights starting from £26.99. They also welcomed a flurry of new Spanish routes, including to Barcelona, Madrid, Valencia, Alicante and Seville.

Sharing a closer insight into his job as a pilot, after recommending Bilbao, Tom acknowledged: “This is a customer service job that happens to be in the aviation industry, and I love the fact that each of the thousands of passengers I’ve flown has a story and a reason to travel.

“It might be for fun, to see family, or we have people who might be working in different countries. It’s really cool, and I love that so much.” He humbly added: “This job is a privilege”.

For more information on Wizz Air flights, or to book your next getaway, visit their website.

Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@reachplc.com