Pioneering London to Dubai airship journey launches in London

Today (9 November 2006) a pioneering airship adventure is being launched in London. 'The Spirit of Dubai', the largest commercial airship in the world, will begin a unique journey from London to Dubai, visiting many of the world's most famous landmarks on the way.

The project marks the first residents moving into The Palm Jumeirah in Dubai - the world's newest landmark. The Palm Jumeirah is a residential and tourism destination created by Nakheel, a key company in Dubai's transformation. Approximately 5km by 5km in size, it is the world's largest man-made island and the equivalent land mass to more than 800 football pitches.

It is planned that the journey will take in landmarks including Big Ben, The London Eye and Tower Bridge in London, the iconic Selfridges building in Birmingham, Stonehenge, the White Cliffs of Dover, the Eiffel Tower and Versailles in Paris, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Colosseum in Rome, the Parthenon in Athens and the Great Pyramids in Egypt. The Spirit of Dubai is due to arrive in Dubai before the end of the year.

Manal Shaheen, Nakheel Director, said: «The journey of the airship sums up the pioneering spirit of Dubai and the journey Nakheel has undergone in creating The Palm Jumeirah, which we believe is the world's newest landmark. Land reclamation on this size and scale, and with the complex shape of a palm tree, has never been attempted let alone achieved. The project that has involved constant innovation and has overcome a number of unprecedented challenges to create construction history.

«Little more than five years ago, Nakheel laid the first grain of sand in the Arabian Gulf and by the end of this year we will be welcoming our very first residents. To celebrate this achievement we are delighted to begin our journey in London, home to some of the world's most famous landmarks that are an inspiration to all.»

The Spirit of Dubai is the world's largest commercial airship and is managed by Airship Management Services, Inc (AMS). The Spirit of Dubai will operate at around 1,500 to 3,000 feet with a cruising speed of around 30 to 50 mph - the airship can reach speeds of up to 70 mph (or faster, with a tailwind!). While cruising at 30 knots The Spirit of Dubai airship consumes 8 gallons (48 lbs) of fuel per hour. During a week of operations The Spirit of Dubai will consume less fuel than a 767 uses to simply move away from its gate to a runway!

Highlights of the journey:

London

Big Ben & The Houses of Parliament

Although colloquially and popularly known as Big Ben, this name actually belongs to the largest of the five bells that stand inside the Great Clock of Westminster. The clock tower that houses Big Ben is one of London's most recognisable landmarks. The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, is famous around the world for being the centre of British politics.

Tower Bridge

Tower Bridge is the most famous of the 101 bridges on the River Thames and is one of the most famous of all London landmarks. The iconic design includes the lifting arms of the roadway which can open to allow the passage of tall ships.

The London Eye

The British Airways London Eye opened in 1999 and is the largest observation wheel in the world. It stands 135 metres high and boasts fantastic panoramic views across the city of London. It took seven years and over 1,700 people in five different countries to build it.

St. Paul's Cathedral

St Paul's Cathedral has overlooked the City of London since 604 AD. The present building dates from the 17th century, and is generally reckoned to be London's fourth St Paul's Cathedral. The current St Paul's was designed by Sir Christopher Wren after the Great Fire of London gutted the Old St. Paul's in 1666.

Birmingham

Selfridges

One of the newest landmarks on 'The Spirit of Dubai's journey is the remarkable exterior design of the Selfridges store in Birmingham which makes it an icon of its time. The outer building is comprised of 15,000 spun aluminium disks. The design of the building was inspired by a chain mail Paco Rabanne dress.

Stonehenge

Stonehenge is one of Great Britain's greatest national icons. Present day Stonehenge is a ruin, with many of the original stones having fallen or been removed by past generations. Built over 5000 years ago, nobody knows its original purpose.

White Cliffs of Dover

The White Cliffs of Dover owe their striking façade to its composition of chalk accentuated by streaks of black flint. The cliffs have great symbolic value because they face across the English Channel at its narrowest point towards continental Europe - historically a source of threatened invasions.

Paris

The Eiffel Tower

The Eiffel Tower was built in 1889 for the International Exposition and also marked the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution. The tower was met with resistance from the public when it was built but today, it is widely considered to be one of the most striking pieces of structural art in the world.

Arc De Triomphe

The Arc de Triomphe was commissioned by Napoleon and is one of two great arches built in Paris by Napoleon to commemorate great victories and the great army who had won them. Beneath the Arc is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Notre Dame

Notre Dame de Paris (French for "Our Lady of Paris", meaning the church in Paris dedicated to the Virgin Mary), is one of the most famous symbols of Paris and one of the finest cathedrals in the world. The cathedral took almost 200 years to construct and was one of the first Gothic cathedrals ever built.

Versailles Palace of Versailles

The Château de Versailles is a royal château in Versailles, France. From 1682, when King Louis XIV moved from Paris, until the royal family was forced to return to the capital in 1789, Versailles was the centre of power in Ancien Régime France.

Venice

Piazza San Marco

Piazza San Marco is the principal square of Venice. A remark, often attributed to Napoleon, refers to the Piazza San Marco as "the drawing room of Europe." Greatly popular throughout Italy, the Piazza has always been seen as the centre of Venice.

Ponte di Rialto

The Rialto Bridge spans the Grand Canal in Venice. It is the oldest bridge across the canal and probably the most famous in the city. Hugely controversial when built because of its audacious design, the bridge has defied its critics to become one of the architectural icons of Venice.

Pisa

The Leaning Tower of Pisa

The Leaning Tower of Pisa was built as the bell tower of the cathedral of Pisa and can be found in the Campo dei Miracoli (Field of Miracles). Five years after construction began in 1173, the tower began to tilt. Construction was halted for almost a hundred years and the Tower was finally completed in 1372 almost 200 years after construction had begun.

Rome

Colosseum

The Colosseum is famous the world over as an iconic symbol of Rome. Originally capable of seating 50,000 spectators, it was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles. Although in a severely ruined condition due to damage caused by earthquakes and stone-robbers, the Colosseum remains one of the finest examples of Roman architecture.

St Peter's Basillica

The Basilica of Saint Peter is the most prominent building inside the Vatican City and a dominant feature of the Roman skyline. Possibly the largest church in Christianity, it covers an area of 23,000 m² and has a capacity of over 60,000 people and is traditionally the burial site of basilica namesake Saint Peter.

Mount Vesuvius

Mount Vesuvius, a volcano east of Naples, is the only volcano on the European mainland to have erupted within the last hundred years. Vesuvius is notorious for its destruction of Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum in A.D. 79.

Milan

Duomo di Milano

The Duomo di Milano is a large and elaborate Gothic Cathedral on the main square in the centre of the city of Milan. It is so big that 40,000 people can fit comfortably within it. Construction of the Duomo began in 1386 but the project was not completed until the 20th century, almost 600 years later!

Athens

The Acropolis

The Acropolis hill is the most important site in the city. It is famous throughout the world for the temples erected in the 5th and 4th centuries BC during the Golden age of Athens most notably the Parthenon

Cairo

The Great Pyramids

The pyramids of Egypt, among the largest constructions ever built by man, constitute one of the most potent and enduring symbols of Ancient Egyptian civilisation. They are, without question, the icons most associated with Egypt and have been a source of inspiration and fascination for over 3000 years.

Dubai

Burj Al Arab

Part of the Dubai-based hospitality group Jumeirah, Burj Al Arab is designed to resemble the graceful sails of an Arabian dhow and soars to a height of 321 metres making it the tallest dedicated all-suite hotel in the world.

The Palm Jumeirah

The Palm Jumeirah is the world's newest landmark the largest man-made island on the planet. A residential and tourism destination, it has been created by Nakheel, a key organisation behind Dubai's transformation into one of the fastest growing cities in the world.