Pic(k) of the week 48: A380 and AL FURSAN FORMATION - Dubai Airshow

The Dubai Airshow, the regions largest Aviation trade-show has just come to an end again. The five day event is a held every two years (odd years) at the DWC, also known as Al Maktoum airport outside Dubai.

This year, 1288 exhibitors were present, with 161 aircraft in static display while the show attracted more than 84000 trade visitors; the shows busiest to date. The order book on site reached 54.5 Billion USD by close of business on the last day.

As a yearly tradition there was a formation of aircraft to open the show on day 1; but what a formation... With more than 25 aircraft, the flypast started with pairs of three different military helicopters, followed by an Emirates A380 in formation with the UAE military formation team Al Fursan. Thereafter was a UAE Airbus A330 MRT (Multi Role Tanker) with some F-16's and a C-17 with Mirage 2000's. Impressive to see all pass overhead in the span of a couple of minutes. 

While I attended the show as part of the Aviation media, I also shot some images on day 0; the rehearsal day just before the show. The image below of the A380 with Al Fursan, I particularly like, as it looks like it is shot in an air to air shoot. Needless to say that the dramatic clouds in the background made for an interesting add-on. 

Image details:

  • Fujifilm X-T3 with the XF100-400 lens
  • ISO 2000, f11, 1/400s, 183mm
  • RAW development in Lightroom Classic
  • DxO Color efex Pro 4 for optimal contrast
  • DxO Define for minimal noise reduction
The image was added to my Aviation Portfolio, a small collection of my best Aviation work which can be found here

More of the Dubai Airshow 2019 work can be found in its dedicated gallery. here

For those that are wondering, what gear I took to the show; I used my Fujifilm X-T3 (with battery grip) with the XF100-400 and an X-Pro3 with the XF18-135. This combo proved to be perfect for the job while keeping the weight down. 


"When everything is going against you, remember that aircraft take-off against the wind, not with it" - Henry Ford



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