When the stars take flights

Ahead of Brad Pitt’s arrival into Abu Dhabi, we examine the travel peeves and preferences of celebrities who have passed through the UAE.

Nicole Kidman on the set of an Etihad Airlines advertisement shoot in Abu Dhabi, in January. Silvia Razgova / The National

This summer, Brad Pitt, who has an estimated net worth of US$240 million (Dh881m), was photographed flying Air France economy class from Paris to Nice with his wife, Angelina Jolie, and their six children. Perhaps the couple were trying to teach the kids a lesson in humility. Or those were the only seats available – after all, it’s a pretty short flight. Either way, when it comes to how this famous family travels, it’s best to expect the unexpected.

Pitt is due to fly into the ­capital in October with the cast and crew of his latest film, the Net­flix-produced military satire War Machine. The rest of his family are expected to join him for a while once filming has started.

The couple is notoriously secretive about their family’s movements, so it’s unlikely we’ll find out exactly how Pitt plans to make his entry into Abu Dhabi. If he’s feeling flush, he’ll pass through Abu Dhabi’s new VIP terminal at Al Bateen Airport and take a Mercedes-Benz limousine transfer between the terminal building and the aircraft gates.

He might be joined by War ­Machine co-star Will Poulter, who recently made full use of his celebrity status by nabbing a free flight to Bali. He tweeted a ­photo of his ticket and a well-used ­British passport with the message "Ready to go! Thanks @Virgin­Atlantic" to his 287,000 Twitter followers.

“The reality is that when celebs come here on a ‘visible’ trip, it’s often sponsored by one of the airlines,” says Danielle Nay, managing director of the specialist event supplier Transformers DXB, which regularly flies celebrities to the UAE to add dazzle to big events.

“Dubai Tourism and Emirates work very closely to maximise visibility for their emirate, as do their equivalents in Abu Dhabi. The class of travel and number in the party is specified at contract stage.”

One of the high-profile clients on Nay’s books is Bob Geldof, who she says likes to fly Emirates business class.

“Obviously some talents are more demanding than others,” she says. “But generally, celebrities don’t usually mind who they fly with so long as it’s in great comfort.”

Sometimes, she says, celebrities request two business-class tickets rather than one first-class seat, so that they can bring a friend or partner.

“And if they have loads of air miles they will sometimes cover the cost of partner travel,” she adds. “A companion has minimal impact on the event organiser’s cost, but makes for happier ­talent.”

Then there are the celebrity endorsement deals. Jennifer Aniston recently signed a global television and digital deal with Emirates for a reported US$5m (Dh18.36m).

And eight months before a ­tearful Nicole Scherzinger watched her (now former) boyfriend Lewis Hamilton win the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, she flew first class with British Airways as a special guest of the airline to appear in its VIP Lounge at Taste of Dubai.

“I regularly travel long haul for work and the flat beds that British Airways is famous for in first class lure me to travel with the airline frequently,” she said.

It’s first class all the way for Nicole Kidman, the face of Etihad Airways, too. In March, when it was announced she was the airline’s new global brand ambassador, Kidman was keen to make it clear that she really was a big fan of the UAE’s national airline.

"I have done movies all over the Middle East, but I have also flown Etihad many times prior to becoming Etihad ambassador," she told The National. "This is my second home, here in Abu ­Dhabi."

Even though John Travolta ­famously has his own private Boeing 707, he’s also a brand ambassador for Qantas. So when he flew with his family to Dubai from London two years ago, it was first class on a Qantas A380.

Last December, American TV personalities Bill and Giuliana Rancic enjoyed the high life in Emirates first class on their way to Dubai.

“We haven’t even taken off yet and @billrancic and I can already declare Best.Flight.Ever. @Emirates is amazing!!! See you soon Dubai!”, Giuliana wrote to her 2.3 million followers on Instagram.

The Rolling Stones rocked into Abu Dhabi’s Al Bateen Airport in February on their own private jet, emblazoned with the band’s logo.

A month later, Furious 7 stars made their way to the capital in the lap of luxury in Etihad's diamond first-class suites. Tyrese Gibson posted videos on social media of himself and co-star Michelle Rodriguez.

“First class just went to another level, baby,” he wrote. “We got our own living room over here.”

Most celebs can’t resist an opportunity to save some money, and Nay says loyalty and reward schemes often come into play. When she flew in former England cricketer Sir Ian Botham to speak at a recent event, he insisted on flying with Emirates because he is a Skywards platinum member, reportedly due to frequent trips to Australia.

“It worked out well,” says Nay. “We booked him into business and he was bumped to first – seat 1A – both ways. This is not unusual with celebs.”

Some stars don’t want to touch down in the UAE and immediately be swarmed by overeager fans, and for that reason, Abu Dhabi airport has a private lounge where they can go through immigration procedures and customs, with special-services officers on hand. An airport insider tells us that Prince Harry, Lindsay Lohan and Nicole Kidman have all been spotted using the service.

But not all celebs are bothered about being mobbed by adoring fans after a long flight. In September last year, Lady Gaga uploaded a picture of herself boarding a plane at Heathrow Airport bound for Dubai, so her fans could track her movements and be there to greet her at the other end, after she emerged from the VIP majlis.

One time of year when a flurry of stars fly pass through the airport’s VIP majlis is December, for the Dubai International Film Festival.

“All the film talent is flown first class on Emirates, who are Diff’s principal sponsor,” a festival insider tells us. That’s except for George Clooney. “He attended in 2007 and flew on a private jet.”