A French business jet performed a low-level flight in Star Wars Canyon, one of the most famous places worldwide among aviation fanatics.
Dassault’s latest business jet, the Falcon 8X trimotor, is about to enter the market, and to perform a maneuver that will be publicized, the French chose a very eye-catching place for aeronautics: the Star Wars Canyon. Nicknamed by enthusiasts, the site bears the original name of Rainbow Canyon (Rainbow Canyon, because of the different colors of the rocks found there).
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The landscape is quite reminiscent of the planet of Tatooine, Anakin Skywalker’s homeland, but the name itself has nothing to do with the Disney movie, as it was given after dictating the GPS points for navigation in the region, one of which is called «Jedi Transition».
Since it is at the entrance to Death Valley Park, where the presence of life is somewhat unusual, the area became an ideal place for fighter pilot training, coming from Marine, Air Force and Navy bases, which are located in California and Nevada.
Associated with this, there is a highway at the top of the valley, which allows very good images to be taken of aircraft passing through the canyon.
For American fanatics this place has become legendary, in fact they travel for hours to reach the desert and take perfect pictures. It is worth remembering that 3 years ago, a US Navy F-18 Super Hornet fighter aircraft flew too low and crashed into the canyon, leaving terrible consequences.
After an investigation pointed out that the marine was flying too close to the ground and accelerating in the descent, which caused a «lapse» in the perception of space and time, based on the GPS data of the aircraft and a video recording (so far undisclosed), the Navy and the other 2 forces decided to increase the minimum height in the canyon, «spoiling» a little the plasticity of the photos.
According to what was reported by our partner Aeroin, last Tuesday, January 4, a civilian aircraft, the first of this model to fly in the area, flew in the canyon after receiving a special authorization.
The following video shows a part of the 20 passes made by the Dassault Falcon 8X, accompanied by an L-39 Albatros military training aircraft.
This particular unit is equipped with cameras and works for CineJet, an aerial filming company that has already performed its services with Delta Air Lines and filmed scenes for the new Top Gun movie. The results of the filming should be unveiled in the coming months, during the Falcon 8X’s presentation at aeronautical events.
