City in the Sky

The World’s Biggest Passenger Plane Takes Off

The cockpit is rigged with cameras covering all angles of the take-off as this massive 100 ton machine hurtles down the runway. It couldn’t happen without ‘lift’, and ‘thrust’ – the two fundamental forces necessary for flight to take place. It must reach its critical speed within a matter of seconds, and once the plane has crossed this threshold, there can be no turning back.

The World’s Biggest Passenger Plane Takes Off

3m 3s

  • Arrival: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Arrival

    S1 E3 - 53m

    There are around a million people airborne at any one time. But what goes up must come down - and getting passengers safely back to earth depends on complex global networks and some astonishing technology.

  • Airborne: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Airborne

    S1 E2 - 52m 30s

    We take flight for granted, but on any journey a hidden army of people keep your plane safe. We explore just what it takes to keep the ‘city in the sky’ airborne and passengers safe between take-off and landing.

  • Departure: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Departure

    S1 E1 - 52m 30s

    What does it take to get a million people off the ground and up in the air? Explore the building of the world’s biggest passenger plane, how designers control the flow of passengers through the busiest airport on the planet, and the perils of getting airborne in the coldest city on Earth.

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