Only a few months after Emirates went viral for sharing a video of a flight attendant standing on top of Burj Khalifa, the airline has done it again. In a new video posted on the airline’s social media, she’s “still there”.
The new advertisement shows the flight attendant yet again standing on top of Burj Khalifa. In this video, the boards she is holding go on to say “Wow, I can see Dubai Expo” and “Finally, here come my friends”.
The camera then pans out to show an Emirates A380, featuring an Expo 2020 livery, flying past her as she holds up a sign inviting people to fly Emirates to “the world’s greatest show”.
Emirates is currently giving away one Expo 2020 Dubai day pass with every ticket purchased.
The video has already garnered quite a lot of attention, with more than 100,000 views in less than four hours. Many are also wondering if an A380 really did fly that close to the attendant as she stood on top of Burj Khalifa.
Even if it did, luckily, the “crew member” in question could undoubtedly handle the pressure, as the person on camera is actually not a flight attendant at all but skydiver and stuntwoman Nicole Smith-Ludvik.
“We’ve done it again – but bigger,” Smith-Ludvik posted on her own social media. “Check this out – I’m back at the top and this time I have an A380 with me.”
Smith-Ludvik is among only a handful of people who have had the privilege of standing at the pinnacle of the world's tallest building – including Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, Tom Cruise and Will Smith.
"We're proud to be among a privileged few who have been allowed to film at the top of the Burj Khalifa by Emaar; and even prouder that we get to showcase our beautiful city, Dubai," Emirates airline president Sir Tim Clark said, after the first advertisement went viral.
"This is, without a doubt, one of the most amazing and exciting stunts I've ever done," Smith-Ludvik wrote on Instagram, after the first advertisement. "A big shout out to Emirates for your creative marketing idea! It was a pleasure being a part of the team."
In the past, Emirates has detailed the safety precautions taken to create such a campaign. According to an airline representative: "A custom platform with an attached pole was built at the top for the protagonist [Smith-Ludvik] to stand on. She was attached to the pole as well as two other different points directly to the pinnacle, through a hidden harness under the Emirates uniform."
How the stunt was done
Emirates released a new video showing how the advertisement has come together. In it, we see Smith-Ludvik ascend to the top once again but this time we also learn how the A380 had to fly around her and Burj Khalifa 11 times at a speed of 145 knots, which is quite slow for the aircraft, to get the perfect shot.
Although they appear to be close, they are actually .8 kilometres (or half a mile) apart, while staying level with the world's tallest building. In addition to the stunt, the plane was also spotting flying over other areas in the emirate including near Burj Al Arab and over Al Wasl Plaza at Expo 2020 Dubai.
