INCREDIBLE aerial shots show mega-cities of the world illuminated like an electric grid by an airline pilot who has travelled the equivalent of ten round trips to the moon.

Pictures taken from 39,000 feet in the air show some of the most recognisable places in the world from an-above earthly perspective.

Dubai, Bangkok, Tokyo and New York are among the collection of images outlined in bright orange, blue, green and white lights. 

Captain Jon Bowles, aged 55, from Bolton, has amassed these jaw-dropping pictures over the last five years during night- flights that span the globe.

A seasoned pilot, he has racked up an astounding five million air miles during his 36 year career as a pilot.

“I look for shapes in the cities, light areas, dark areas and patterns in the way the city is laid out,” he said.

“Older cities tend to radiate out of the centre, with ring roads and spokes running into the centre.

“These older cities sometimes look like huge fluorescent growths on the countryside, with tendrils spreading out from the nucleus.

“Newer cities tend to be arranged in grids, but these can have interesting patterns where the local topography has dictated the growth of urban areas.

“Largely, the cities I photograph are dictated by the routes flown, the weather and how the city looks from the air.”

Mr Bowles pilots a Boeing 777, sometimes known as the Triple Seven which is a group of long range wide body twin engine jet airliners. 

They are the largest twinjets and have a capacity of up to 451 passengers with a range of up to nine and a half thousand nautical miles.

“There is no danger involved in taking the shots, I only shoot at times of low workload, or occasionally from the jump-seat,” he said.

“Shooting through glass has some limitations, distortion becomes can be a problem.  

“Also the glass needs to be clean. I have been known to clean the windows myself before a flight.

“Turbulence makes photography impractical, so I only shoot in still air.

“I love how different the world looks at night. I especially enjoy flying at night with no moon and a sky full of stars.

“I love seeing storms flickering in the distance, remote settlements sparkling in the desert, seeing the aurora when it's active. I also like the lights of cities from above.

“One of the things I love most about flying, whether by day or night, is how it puts things in perspective.

“When you see the planet from above, you tend to appreciate the world we live on more.

"It's too easy to get stuck in your immediate environment, to forget that there is a whole planet out there, and that most of our day to day worries are trivial when seen in a planetary context.

“The footprint of the human race on planet Earth is also a message I like to show with my photography. 

“At night over heavily populated areas the massive impact of urbanisation on the planet is even more obvious than during the day.”