Pilots have been using their aircraft to spell out messages during the COVID-19 outbreak

Pilots have been using their aircraft to spell out requests and share uplifting messages on radar tracking maps during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Governments and health officials have been promoting the "stay home" message to save lives during the COVID-19 outbreak in the weeks and months to come. Earlier this month, a pilot used his plane to drive that message home by spelling out "stay home" in the sky over Austria. The pilot, whose identity is unknown, was flying a private DA40 aircraft at the time. The flight departed from an airport in Wiener Neustadt, about 50 miles south of Vienna, and returned 24 minutes later after spelling out the social distancing message to the world.

And on Wednesday, a pilot at the helm of a Magnus Fusion 212 showed their appreciation for healthcare workers by drawing a thumbs up, alongside a medical cross in the sky over Hungary. The message comes as people across the world have been taken part in mass rounds of applause from their windows, balconies and doorsteps in support of healthcare workers and frontline responders battling the coronavirus pandemic.

Both messages were recorded by Flightradar24, the global flight tracker that provides real-time information about air traffic around the world.

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