17 hours continuous filming a flight: how is this possible ?
 

I stumbled upon this video: , which shows a full 17 hours QF10 flight LHR-SYD out of a starboard Y window. Probably he had pasted a camera with a suction cup to the window, but how did he power the camera ? No camera can film 17 hours without interruption for changing batteries (?) so did he have a power bank ?

Many/most cameras allow charging via USB these days. There's external power supplies for the popular GoPro cameras for exactly this purpose, for example.
Time lapse videos would not be possible without cameras able to record for an extended period of time.

Cameras like GoPros can be powered via USB so there are several ways. Most likely they had it plugged into one of the plane's USB or even AC outlets or had a USB battery pack(s) that were swapped as needed. I have a 96wAh (iirc) that would probably power a GoPro most of a day if I had to guess.

Definitely a power bank. I fly with a GoPro mounted over my shoulder, so it can see the instruments and out the windscreen as well. I use it for debriefing my flights, and if the worst happens it can act as a black box since small aircraft lack them. In my plane, the GoPro shares a 26,800mAh power bank with any cell phones and backup 2-way radio. My iPad is connected to a 10,000mAh or 26,800mAh power bank, which leaves the iPad's internal battery as the backup.

The bigger problem is that GoPros and iCrap devices overheat easily in the sun.

I've been coming back to this thread again and again to post the following question:
Why would anyone do this?

Today, I decided to finally post it.

I mean sure. Takeoff and landing are always interesting and I can think of countless times they've been used in "intro" type scenes of personal, commercial videos, etc. But, what about the rest of the time? I mean sure, Superman could fly by, he might catch a gremlin from the Twilight Zone movie or an intercepting military jet, or whatever flew between Aeries 31and TWA 517 (I had to look that up) but other than that?

A second series questions. Might the flight attendants have had a problem with this rig on the window during takeoff and landing? Shouldn't it have been stowed? Technically, it blocks a portion of the view out the window. Don't some airlines/FAs ask that all window shades be up during takeoff and landing so you have an unobstructed view outside the plane in the event of an emergency?

Those suction mounts (at least the actual GoPro ones IME) won't go anywhere if you attach them correctly and are a million times less likely to become a cabin missile during an RTO than me holding my phone during takeoff. While it does block part of the window as long as it's not an emergency exit I doubt they'd care as any smoke or fire would be visible still. As for why? Why not? I pointed mine out the window of the Eurostar I took from London to Paris and again a few days later when I traveled from Paris to Bayeux. Have I watched all 6ish hours of the video from those trips? Nope but it was interesting to scrub through them and see different part of the English and French countryside.

So to answer your first question, there are a whole lot of reasons... "fake vlogging" (some people think vloggers get special treatment)... some people who are unable to fly want to live vicariously? (yeah, didn't think this was a thing until I met a person who actually can't fly for medical reasons but loved flying before)... documentary purposes if they anticipate poor treatment or to prove something to someone(s)... actual vlogging for themselves or others... and the list goes on...

As for if the cabin crew might have a problem? Well, technically yes. You could damage equipment doing that (for example there is often a little "nub" in the suction cup. Not likely to damage the plastic part of the window, however some people attach the camera to the screens and those CAN be damaged by that nub. There are some possible privacy concerns (even if the camera is pointed "outwards", it can still record audio and people in the general vicinity don't know if it is recording them or not). Stowage, possibly (despite what the previous posted noted, it is possible to not attach the suction cup properly and can be considered a projectile). Will cabin crew actually do anything about it? Likely not unless there is a complaint(s) about it. As others have mentioned previously, you and the "filmer" are in a big metal tube in the sky for hours.... you do have to live with each other for at least that long.

That said, there are some (at varying degrees) who do not like to be recorded (especially by vloggers) and may take actions to prevent/stop it.

I hadn't thought about the audio-angle of the recording. I'm not saying the guy should have been locked up or anything. But, I didn't think about recording of voices around the window mounted rig. And, I guess I could see the crew going either way on whether it's "allowed" ... whether takeoff/landing, could damage the plane, complaint of a nearby pax, etc. 17 hours in a metal tube causes all sorts of reactions and behaviours by people.

I mean I get it. Lots of reasons or for no reason at all. Maybe a certain cloud formation. On a train with varied scenery going by for hours, nifty. That's why I kept coming back to this one before eventually posting it. More power to the flyer for doing it and posting it.

One other reason is for white noise. If you search youtube, you can find white noise videos (up to 10h for the ones I've seen) where it's just effectively an audio recording of someone's flight with the main component being the white noise (they replace the video with a generated flying in the clouds background). You hear the drone, the occasional call bell and maybe some indistinct voices.

Well, 700k+ views on that first video there, so other people are apparently interested in it as well.
My favourite for that: Especially when played on a full-range speaker.

I'm one of those who can fall sleep at the drop of a hat but these white noise videos are great to use on babies. Suggested to a colleague who had a 4yo...worked better than expected... He kept falling asleep while sitting with the child.

The answer to Why? is usually because they can but I would guess that not many actually watch the entire 17+ hours. They have other full flight videos and do provide time stamps in the comments so one can jump to whatever they may be interested in.

Instead of having enough power, I’m sort of interested in the file size.

Hi, sorry for jumping in late but I can help you with this (as I'm the person who made this video :)

People used to enjoy putting these videos on as background noise. I honestly have no idea why people watched these videos, but enough people did that I made videos each time I flew. I guess, think someone who does a full 'flight sim' flight on their computer to feel like they've gone somewhere without going there - but with an actual video. The Qantas one was a challenge due to the length - the Gopro was either connected to a power bank or to the USB seat power (I think this one had USB so I used that) and back then, they didn't use a tonne of storage so a 128GB MicroSD was more than enough. I think total file size encoded and uploaded was around 17GB.

They became quite a technical challenge as time went on, and I stopped making these videos around 2018 and focussed on the in person 'vlog' type content (ironically right after this trip).

I don't think it's so much a power issue as it is a capacity issue. Can you get 17 hours of continuous 1080p on a 1TB SD card?

A definite upgrade. I enjoy your videos.

I've seen a few people doing it on long-haul flights, using seat power to charge via USB-C. One told me they stepped down the quality/frame rate and had no trouble fitting a ten-hour flight on his card (I can't recall the card size with certainty, but I think it was 256GB).