Watch Emirates’ new daredevil ad shot by a drone

Emirates’ 2021 ad featuring a stunt actor perched atop the world’s tallest building proved such a hit that the airline decided to do it all over again … and then some.

The same woman stands at the very top of the same building — the 828-meter-high Burj Khalifa in Dubai — except this time the world’s largest passenger jet makes a guest appearance.

As the ad shows (below), stunt actor Nicole Smith-Ludvik, dressed as an Emirates flight attendant, holds up message boards inviting people to visit Dubai’s Expo event as an A380 with special livery roars past in the background …

The grand production required careful preparation by Emirates pilots, flight operation teams, air traffic controllers, helicopter pilots, drone operators, and film crews.

“The carefully choreographed flypast involved the A380 flying at a low altitude of only 2,700 feet, the exact height of Burj Khalifa,” Emirates said.

The carrier also released a video revealing behind-the-scenes footage of the shoot …

Reaching the tip of the massive structure from Burj Khalifa’s 160th level takes about 75 minutes, with Smith-Ludvik and her team having to climb several tiers and ladders inside a tube.

Though cleverly concealed, Smith-Ludvik is of course wearing a safety harness to ensure that any mishap would be a wobble rather than a catastrophic fall.

Safely in place, a drone was then sent buzzing across Dubai’s spectacular cityscape before hovering before Smith-Ludvik to film her revealing each message board. Other shots in the ad were captured by a camera operator flying aboard a helicopter.

Emirates launched the new multi-channel campaign in 12 languages across 19 countries covering TV and cinema as well as digital and social media platforms.

The stunning ad is part of a wider $20 million commitment by Emirates to highlight Dubai and the Expo event, which runs until March.

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