Emirates, Etihad, flydubai, Air Arabia in epic fly-past
FLY-PAST CREATES WORLD-FIRST INVOLVING COMBINATION OF AIRCRAFT
Emirates, Etihad, flydubai, Air Arabia and Al Fursan took to the skies in unison yesterday to celebrate the UAE’s 47th National Day, as well as commemorate the legacy and values of the UAE’s founding father the late Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan.
The spectacular fly-past began at Ras Al Khaimah and continued on to Umm Al Quwain and Ajman, and then passed landmarks including the Sharjah Corniche, Dubai’s Palm and World Islands, and finally crossing the Abu Dhabi Corniche and the Shaikh Zayed Mosque, where all aircraft then split and continued on to their respective airports.
The fly-past — a world-first — involved 11 aircraft: a flydubai Boeing 737 MAX 8, an Air Arabia Airbus A320, an Etihad Airways Airbus A380 and an Emirates Airline Airbus A380, as well as seven Al Fursan aerobatic display jets from the UAE Air Force.
This is the first time this unique combination of aircraft types has flown in formation.
‘Stair step’ formation
The carefully choreographed ‘stair step’ aerial formation was done with the aircraft establishing their holding positions at altitudes ranging from 2,000 to 5,000 feet with a 1,000 foot vertical separation.
The aircraft then descended into their positions and vertical separation was reduced to 300 feet.
Flying first in the ‘Year of Zayed’ formation was flydubai, cruising at an altitude of 1,000 feet, closely followed by Air Arabia at an altitude of 1,300 feet.
Next came the Etihad Airbus A380 at 1,600 feet, stepped up by the Emirates Airbus A380 at the highest altitude at 1,900 feet to make room for the seven Al Fursan jets set in an arrow formation ready to release their signature smoke trails in the colours of the UAE flag.