Watch a Pilot Land His Aircraft on the Burj Al Arab Jumeirah Helipad

We've all seen STOL (short take-off and landing) competitions where pilots land a plane almost at a fixed point on the runway. It's amazing to achieve such a feat, although bush pilots do such things on a regular basis. That's why learning that a pilot managed to land a plane on a 27-meter (88-foot) helipad doesn't seem that impressive. STOL champions need less than 10 feet (3 meters) to land. However, I've changed my mind after seeing the video below and listening to Polish pilot Luke Czepiela talking about his achievement.

It's a lot easier to land when you have visual cues, that is when you see the whole runaway or the terrain in front of you. Landing on a helipad is different because the "runaway" disappears under the wings before you touch down, and you only see the abyss. "The biggest challenge was the lack of any external points of reference, which is usually found at an airport where you have hundreds of meters of runway," confessed Czepiela. A small mistake and the plane plunges on the other side from a 212-meter (700-foot) height, in the case of the Burj Al Arab Jumeirah skyscraper.

Czepiela practiced on ground runaways to ensure everything went as planned, with 650 test landings performed since 2021 in Poland, Dubai, and the U.S. The Carbon Cub STOL plane has undergone extensive modifications to make it lighter. Ultimately, the team from the aircraft manufacturer CubCrafter managed to get down to just 425 kg (940 lbs.). They also moved the fuel tank to the rear of the plane to allow for more aggressive braking.

Looks like a lighter aircraft poses challenges on its own because the wind throws it around more, and the pilot has less control. That's why the team needed some steady headwind to land the plane, but not too much. Finally, the aircraft also had to take off from the same helipad. That's why the team also installed nitrogen tanks to enhance the engine power. Nitrogen speeds up combustion in the engine, making it deliver more power without adding too much weight.

Burj Al Arab Jumeirah helipad is a preferred playground for crazy PR stunts. Champions Roger Federer and Andre Agassi played tennis up there in 2005, and in 2013, F1 pilot David Coulthard performed donuts in a Formula 1 car. Luke Czepiela is also no stranger to unsual flight performances. Previously, he landed a plane on Poland's Sopot Pier, the longest wooden pier in Europe, at 511.5 meters (1,678 ft).