Emirates flies America’s Cup boat to Bermuda from New Zealand [VIDEO]

Emirates SkyCargo flew 44 tonnes worth of boat and associated gear from Auckland to Bermuda for the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup sailing competition, which will begin in late May.  The boat, called “New Zealand Aotearoa” is the Emirates Team New Zealand’s race boat. The shipment included all associated support equipment, including the team’s chase boat.

The catamaran-style boat had to be disassembled into smaller parts – two hulls, two wings, beams, rudders and other equipment. The components were then trucked from their base to the airport, screened and then nose-loaded onto the 747-400F aircraft. The loading process took over four hours.

Finally, the freighter set off on the flight, which lasted 18 hours and 50 minutes. The journey included a 90-minute stopover in Los Angeles for the aircraft to refuel and change flight crew before continuing on to Bermuda.

For your Friday viewing pleasure, here’s a video documenting the process: