Departing from City Airport Manchester (Barton), The Reds Experience helicopter ride tracks over several of Manchester’s famous landmarks, including Manchester United’s training ground and world famous stadium, Old Trafford, on a tour of approximately 20 minutes / 33 miles. The flight path and order of landmarks enroute may vary due to the wind direction or be curtailed due to Air Traffic restrictions on the day, as this flight takes place in controlled airspace – we cannot go where we want when we want!
Shortly into the flight you will overfly the Carrington training ground which is Manchester United Football Club’s training facility and academy with its 12 grass pitches and 2 synthetic turfs. It was built between 1999 and 2002 and in 2013, major additions were completed, including a Medical Centre and Sports Science Department, bringing the total construction cost of the training complex to over £60 million.
Next you will enjoy spectacular aerial views of the famous Old Trafford Stadium – the ‘Theatre of Dreams’ as nicknamed by Bobby Charlton, an iconic midfield United player from 1956 – 1973. It has been United’s home ground since 1910, when the capacity was 80,000. Currently Old Trafford with a capacity of 75,811 is the second-largest football stadium in the United Kingdom after Wembley Stadium and the ninth largest in Europe.
Close by is Old Trafford Cricket Ground the home of Lancashire County Cricket Club since 1864. Old Trafford is England’s second oldest test venue and one of the most renowned. It was the venue for the first ever Ashes test to be held in England in July 1884 and has hosted two Cricket World Cup semi-finals.
Salford Quays, the Greater Manchester unique water front clearly stands out on the landscape and has everything you can do in a big city packed into just one outstanding square mile. Substantial new development and redevelopment means there are landmarks such as The Lowry Hotel, the Imperial War Museum North and Media City. Located near the end of the Manchester Ship Canal, it was the previous site of Manchester Docks. Built by the Manchester Ship Canal Company, Manchester Docks was made up of two sections, Salford Docks which was the larger of two and Pomona Docks situated to the east. Both were opened in 1894 by Queen Victoria and covered 120 acres of water and 1,000 acres of land. More recently Salford Quays has become one of the first and largest urban regeneration projects in the United Kingdom following the closure of the dockyards in 1982.
In this vicinity before returning to City Airport you should also see land marks such as Trafford Park, the world’s first planned industrial estate and currently largest in Europe along with the impressive Intu Trafford Centre, just 5 miles west of Manchester City centre. Being the second largest retail shopping centre in the United Kingdom and attracting more than 35 million visits annually, the main dome can easily be recognised. Situated to the side of Intu Trafford Centre is the Chill Factor with the iconic and longest real snow indoor ski slope and resort in the United Kingdom.
Please note, the Reds Experience flight takes place in a Robinson R44, 3 seater helicopter.