National pride flies high

Measuring in excess of 50,000 square feet in size, the banner was towed under a Bell 412 Aircraft supplied to Falcon Aviation Services LLC (FAS), a wholly owned company of Dr Shaikh Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nayhan, Member of the Executive Council, by Evergreen Helicopters who are current partners with FAS in providing Search and Rescue services to the UAE Armed Forces. The previous record had been held by IKEA in Australia, who flew a banner measuring 47,000 square feet last year.

The banner depicting the UAE flag was clearly visible from up to 20 kilometres and the route was specifically designed to take the flag right across the capital making it visible to virtually the entire population of the city of Abu Dhabi.

The idea for the sky high celebration on UAE National Day came initially from Shaikh Sultan and the Chairman of FAS, Captain Salem Al Kayoumi, after FAS had initiated operations to conduct aerial banner towing as part of its growing aviation business. “What better way to celebrate our nation’s birthday than to proudly display the UAE flag not only to Abu Dhabi and the UAE, but to the rest of the world as well,” said Captain Al Kayoumi. The banner was supplied by Heli Banners, a UK based company.