Man in jet suit astonishingly matches speed with Airbus A380 over Dubai
- A man wearing a Kevlar wing flew alongside an Emirates Airbus A380 in stunning formation
- They were likened to “mosquitoes flying with an eagle or a condor”
- You can check it out in this incredible footage
Published on Mar 11, 2024 at 8:27 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Mar 22, 2024 at 4:52 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Alessandro Renesis
It might look like AI, but this incredible video of Emirates Airbus A380 and Jetman Dubai in a jet suit flying together back in 2015 is simply breathtaking
The formation flight took place over Dubai, making aviation history
One of the Jetman Dubai team, the late Vincent Reffet, was wearing a jet suit and Kevlar wing with four engines flying close to the enormous Emirates Airbus A380.
While initially thought to be “madness” with the task likened to “mosquitoes flying next to an eagle or condor”, it was soon seen as a challenge and an opportunity to showcase skills.
Intensive preparation involved minimizing risks through maintaining minimum separation and choreographing every sequence meticulously.
“We place the event inside the bubble then we say to the event: ‘Do not go outside of that piece of airspace’,” said head of aviation regulations and safety for the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, Michael Rudolph.
Communication between the Jetman and the aircraft captain was crucial for safety to understand each other’s movements.
With Jetman’s endurance only 10 minutes maximum, he had to use “very high power settings to maintain formation”.
Despite challenges, the operation was a stunning success – check it out in the video above.
Sadly Reffet was killed during training in Dubai in 2020.
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All Supercar Blondie contributors undergo editorial review and fact-checking to ensure accuracy and authority in automotive journalism. After gaining her BA Hons in French and English at the University of Nottingham, Amelia embarked on a vocational diploma from the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ). This led to numerous opportunities, from interning at Vogue to being on the small team that launched Women’s Health magazine in the UK, which was named the PPA Consumer magazine of the year for three years running. As Health, Beauty and Fitness editor, Amelia personally received a Johnson & Johnson Award and was shortlisted for both PPA and BSME titles. Since then, Amelia has created content for numerous titles and brands, including the Telegraph, 111 Skin, Waitrose, Red magazine, Stylist, and Elle, as well as being Head of Content at Vitality and Editor in Chief at INLondon magazine. “My superpower is translating technical jargon about the mechanical workings of a supercar into a relatable story you’ll want to share with your friends after you’ve read it.” After joining the SB Media family as a senior journalist in September of 2023, Amelia’s role has evolved to see her heading up the SEO output of the editorial team. From researching the most ‘Google-able’ key terms to producing evergreen content - it’s been a time of hard work, growth, and success for the editorial team and the Supercar Blondie website. “I like to think of myself as a ‘method journalist’. In other words: I live and breathe whatever I am writing about. When writing about fitness, I trained as a personal trainer, and as a beauty editor, I completed an ‘expert’ in scent diploma with the Fragrance Foundation. “During my tenure at Supercar Blondie, however, I did something I never thought possible: I passed my driving test at the age of 36. One day I’d love to train as a mechanic to better understand what happens under the hood, too. “My sweet spot is providing readers with a ‘takeaway’ (read: something new they didn’t know before) after reading every one of my stories. While I don’t claim to be an expert in the automotive world, I know the experts and bodies in the field to rely on to provide our readers with an informative and thought-provoking story every time they visit the site.”
