NEWS RELEASE
ETIHAD AIRWAYS AND UNIVERSAL PICTURES UNVEIL
NEWLY-DECALED
FAST & FURIOUS PLANE
First Stop of the Luxury Boeing Jet Airliner Kicks off Global Junket and
World Premiere of
Furious 7
Etihad Airways,
the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, and Universal Pictures today unveiled the luxury
Fast & Furious 777 airliner at Los Angeles International
Airport (LAX). Actor/producer Vin Diesel was on hand as Etihad Airways
Flight 171 arrived from Abu Dhabi to kick off the global junket and
world premiere of
Furious 7. The film arrives in theaters on April 3.
Representing a welcome first for the franchise, the
Fast & Furious 777 will fly the direct route between Abu
Dhabi and Los Angeles, which Etihad Airways opened in June 2014. The
airline is also a sponsor of the
Furious 7 world premiere, which takes place in Los Angeles on April 1.
As the
United Arab Emirates offered an opportunity to inject striking elements
and locales into the series’ mythology, Abu Dhabi became a key location
for the
Furious 7 production. Over the course of two weeks in April
2014, the team lensed in areas outside Abu Dhabi in the Liwa Desert, as
well as in the city center at such locations as the Sheikh Zayed Grand
Mosque, Emirates Palace hotel, the Yas Marina
F1 race circuit and the Etihad Towers. Considering Abu Dhabi’s
striking skyline—one accentuated with stunning architectural
achievements—aerial shots of the skyscrapers were mandatory.
“Etihad
Airways is one of the fastest-growing airlines in the world with a
strong history of culture and innovation and a commitment to reimagining
the travel experience
for our guests,” said Peter Baumgartner, Chief Commercial Officer of
Etihad Airways. “We are pleased to work together with Universal, an
organization that shares that same spirit of innovation and
reimagination when it comes to the world of entertainment,
to unveil our newly-decaled Boeing 777 aircraft in support of the Fast & Furious franchise and
Furious 7, which premieres next month and highlights our airline’s home of Abu Dhabi.”
“When we began filming
The Fast and the Furious in 2000, if you told me that we would
one day have our logo on a wide-body jet, I would have said you were
crazy,” said producer Neal H. Moritz, who has shepherded all seven films
in the series. “We are so honored that Etihad
has partnered with us to support this very personal film, and we thank
the people of the United Arab Emirates for all the kindness and
graciousness they showed throughout production.”
The
Fast & Furious decal will remain on the plane for the next four to six months.
About Etihad Airways
Etihad
Airways began operations in 2003, and in 2014 carried 14.8 million
passengers. From its Abu Dhabi base, Etihad
Airways flies to 111 existing or announced passenger and cargo
destinations in the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia and the
Americas. The airline has a fleet of 111 Airbus and Boeing aircraft,
and more than 200 aircraft on firm order, including
69 Boeing 787s, 25 Boeing 777-X, 62 Airbus A350s and nine Airbus A380s.
Etihad
Airways holds equity investments in airberlin, Air Serbia, Air
Seychelles, Aer Lingus, Alitalia, Jet Airways and
Virgin Australia, and is in the process of formalising an equity
investment in Swiss-based Etihad Regional, operated by Darwin Airline.
Etihad Airways, along with airberlin, Air Serbia, Air Seychelles,
Alitalia, Etihad Regional, Jet Airways and NIKI, also
participate in Etihad Airways Partners, a new brand that brings
together like-minded airlines to offer customers more choice through
improved networks and schedules and enhanced frequent flyer benefits.
For more information, please visit:
www.etihad.com.
About
Furious 7
Vin
Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson,
Chris “Ludacris” Bridges and Jordana Brewster return to
form a furious team of seven family members united in purpose. They
are joined by
Fast fan favorites Elsa Pataky and Lucas Black, as well new
additions to the ensemble including Jason Statham, Kurt Russell,
Nathalie Emmanuel, Djimon Hounsou, Ronda Rousey and Tony Jaa.
With
Furious 7, this crew heads across the globe for one last ride
together in their most gravity-defying and emotional adventure to date.
And as they form a tighter band than ever: The Furious 7—Dom, Brian,
Hobbs, Letty, Roman, Tej and Mia—they will face
their greatest threat yet in places as far away as Abu Dhabi and
Azerbaijan…and as familiar as the streets they call home.
www.furious7.com
About Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures is a division of Universal Studios (www.universalstudios.com).
Universal Studios is part of NBCUniversal. NBCUniversal is one of the
world’s leading media and entertainment companies in the development,
production and marketing of entertainment, news and information to a
global audience. NBCUniversal owns and operates
a valuable portfolio of news and entertainment networks, a premier
motion picture company, significant television production operations, a
leading television stations group and world-renowned theme parks.
NBCUniversal is a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation.
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