Hundreds of enthusiasts visit air show at Al Khor
Originally published in Gulf Times on January 29, 2011
Hundreds of enthusiasts thronged the Al Khor airfield, 31km north of Doha, after the annual Fly-in Open Day was thrown open for two days yesterday.
Organised by the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority (QCAA), under the patronage of chairman Abdul Aziz al-Nuaimi, and supported by Qatar Flying Club, Darwish Travel, Qatar Aeronautical College (QAC), and RasGas, the event has now entered its fifth consecutive year.
The organisers this year are holding it for two days, hoping more people get the chance to visit the event.
After an informal opening ceremony, attended by QCAA chairman al-Nuaimi and senior aviation industry officials, the event began at 9am.
“We believe close to 1,500 people from all walks of life, and from diverse backgrounds came out here today to have a close look at aircraft,” Ahmed al-Mohannadi, a 40-year industry veteran and senior adviser to QCAA, as well as manager of Al Khor airfield told Gulf Times.
“Even the number of aircraft is up, to 25 from 17 last year,” he said.
On show are privately-owned light and heavy aircraft, as well as paragliding equipment from Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Strutting on the strip were models from Cessna, Piper Archer, Cirrus and Twin Star.
However, like previous years, an $8.1mn (list price) Cessna Citation CJ3, belonging to Sheikh Ahmed bin Hamad al-Thani, stole the limelight once again.
The luxury plane flies at a maximum speed of Mach 0.74 (three quarter the speed of sound) and offers a maximum of eight leather-seated passengers views from as high as 45,000ft, pilot Phil Lyons said.
Last year, Sheikh Hamad’s $7mn Cessna Citation Jet CJ1 turned out to be the crowd-puller.
“The plane was picked up from Wichita (Kansas, US) in March 2010. We’ve had three Atlantic crossings since then. We travel quite a bit. I average 20 hours a month,” Lyons said.
A full fuel-tank gets passengers from Doha to Istanbul, Turkey directly. Destinations past that require refuelling.
“This is the best job in the world. Unlike commercial flying where you never meet your passengers, you meet different people. You also stop at destination, get out and look around,”
Lyons said.
Because of the large number of visitors, registration for a free ride in one of the aircraft ended as early as 11.30am, leaving many disappointed.
A private pilot licence holder himself, al-Mohannadi said that the event served to introduce the general public to the world of aviation, educate them about history and development of the industry and even to get them to know about the Al Khor/Al Thakira region.
“We were expecting around 30 aircraft. But due to bad weather, only six of the 12 planes from the UAE could reach here. Hopefully tomorrow, we will have more,” al-Mohannadi said.
Besides the air-show, which also offers visitors to fly with pilots on short rides, various activities have also sprung up on the sidelines, thanks to organisations such as the Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA), businesses and other partners.
Visitors to the tent can now enjoy falcon shows, a ‘traditional corner’, folk music, and buy snacks.
The open day runs again from 9am to 4.30pm today.
Photocaption: QCAA chairman al-Nuaimi, left, and Al Khor airfield manager al-Mohannadi inspecting an aircraft yesterday
As Published
