Taking love to new heights: Virgin Australia’s first-ever wedding in the sky
Love was well and truly in the air as Virgin Australia hosted its first-ever wedding in the sky. Stunned passengers looked on as Elaine Tiong and Luke Serdar tied the knot on a VA841 flight from Melbourne to Sydney, getting their life together as newlyweds off to a flying start.
The bride wore white, with a bouquet of red roses, as she walked down the aircraft aisle to her husband-to-be, in front of a plane-load of unsuspecting guests. He was waiting with Australian actress Tottie Goldsmith, who acted as celebrant for the ceremony.
![Elaine Tiong walks down the aircraft aisle wearing a white dress, holding a bunch of red roses](http://images.ctfassets.net/rxqefefl3t5b/4XZ9jzolFbBQMGA71LKNqk/27de7c14bf52c1fe7ac979f5ad4a625a/Elaine_and_Luke_Serdar__Photog_Carly_Ravenhall00036.jpg?fl=progressive&q=80)
![Elaine and Luke Serdar saying their vows, with Tottie Goldsmith in the background](http://images.ctfassets.net/rxqefefl3t5b/5R40BbqhfaLPclHaA3XlJ9/7240e6060f3eb3bf90974f0653bfe7a5/Elaine_and_Luke_Serdar__Tottie_Goldsmith_Photog_Carly_Ravenhall00002.jpg?fl=progressive&q=80)
![Elaine putting the ring onto Luke's finger during their ceremony onboard a Virgin Australia flight](http://images.ctfassets.net/rxqefefl3t5b/6c1G7QGBnRDJCXP2OWGdoO/5c8ec3bb57baebdecd93cccf7535bb0c/Elaine_and_Luke_Serdar__Photog_Carly_Ravenhall00013.jpg?fl=progressive&q=80)
“We actually had planned to marry onboard a Virgin Australia flight on Valentine’s Day, but we had to postpone when the Victorian lockdown came into play just 24-hours before the big day,” said Luke. “So after a false start, we couldn’t be happier to finally tie the knot.”
Luke and Elaine live in Prahran in Melbourne’s inner eastern suburbs. The couple said “I do” mid-flight after deciding that they wanted an unconventional wedding – and something a little more casual than the standard affair.
“I’m 17 weeks’ pregnant and we just decided we didn’t want any fuss and here we are marrying onboard a flight in front of 150 complete strangers,” Elaine laughed. “The truth is, I was a wedding planner for many years, and after organising hundreds of weddings, I wanted something different for us.
![Luke and Elaine Serdar hold hands as they sit on the aircraft after their onboard wedding](http://images.ctfassets.net/rxqefefl3t5b/1ckckWNJmIqc5MuEKc5Yrz/3471a4192e4fcbb7b181126e0d2b0e68/Elaine_and_Luke_Serdar__Photog_Carly_Ravenhall00024.jpg?fl=progressive&q=80)
![Elaine and Luke Serdar](http://images.ctfassets.net/rxqefefl3t5b/4cIS5JVEAh54PtDrtYvmbr/dec811308712d6ce1dc961c20542884e/Elaine_and_Luke_Serdar__Photog_Carly_Ravenhall00025.jpg?fl=progressive&q=80)
“This is always what I had dreamed of – doing something random and completely out of the box,” she continued. “After friends suggested I marry on a flight – Luke loves travel and planes – I couldn’t think of a more perfect way for us to say ‘I do’, and here we are.”
Due to COVID-19 regulations, the newlyweds weren’t allowed to seal the deal with a kiss onboard the aircraft. Instead, they shared their first embrace as they disembarked from the aircraft in Sydney, and could finally remove their face masks.
![Luke and Elaine Serdar share a kiss outside a Virgin Australia aircraft after their onboard wedding](http://images.ctfassets.net/rxqefefl3t5b/12bNs9XIM33cBWeToNRItR/453d31b1bd87b4b40f413cf2465f578f/Elaine_and_Luke_Serdar__Photog_Carly_Ravenhall00029.jpg?fl=progressive&q=80)
![Elaine and Luke Serdar celebrate their onboard wedding](http://images.ctfassets.net/rxqefefl3t5b/4NPqBLmZUEyNaRlDhZ6uZN/f50342b64362f008a5af9b72f45b81bd/Elaine_and_Luke_Serdar__Photog_Carly_Ravenhall0.jpg?fl=progressive&q=80)
![Elaine and Luke Serdar stand outside the plane with the cabin crew of the flight on which they were married](http://images.ctfassets.net/rxqefefl3t5b/4u6ZTL86LenPafklObrTKR/8c5a5e8ef2c908775526eb6bcd0d5204/Elaine_and_Luke_Serdar__Photog_Carly_Ravenhall00052.jpg?fl=progressive&q=80)
Virgin Australia is no stranger to a mid-air celebration. From onboard marriage proposals to Australia’s first-ever fashion show on a passenger flight and a Guinness World Record performance of the Black Eyed Peas at 41,000 feet, the airline has form when it comes to thinking outside the (flight) box – and showing its passengers a right good time.
As for this latest event, it’s a match made in mid-air (if not quite in heaven) and we wish the happy couple all the best.
Visit Virgin Australia to find out more.