Sometimes things are completely different than you thought during planning phase. It’s already the second day with wide spread thunderstorms over the deserts of Saudi of Arabia and the Persian Gulf. (We considered Sand storms but not weather like this). The trip Luxor to Al Khaimah (near Dubai) with approx. 2300 km and 8-hour flight time is the longest single one on our tour. On this route we really want to make sure that we encounter good conditions. That’s because to the east of our route there is Iran with an ADIZ (Air Defense Identification Zone) for which we do not have an entry permission. On the other hand Saudi Arabia wants us to follow the airways as exactly as possible. Besides, the fuel reserves we have on board will not allow any major deviations due to thunderstorm activity en-route.
However, one problem very seldom stands alone. It is Friday and this means holiday in Arabia. New flight permissions can only be applied for on Saturday. And finally the Luxor airport management has a bad surprise for us. Not only they want to charge for the parking but additionally they require a high penalty payment. A completely unusual and not acceptable behavior of the airport to required penalties due to a non scheduled stop.  Thanks to FSI and the local handling agent the amount could finally be reduced significantly.
In the end the three days delay paid off. Starting at best flight conditions in Luxor we overfly the Red Sea and the Arabian peninsula heading Dubai. Saudi Arabia is covered by a thick red-yellow cloud of dust. Over Bahrain we noticed how important it was, to be patient: Two "left-over" mighty CBs stand over the Persian Gulf. Luckily at the right spots, because with some course correction to the southeast we are able to stay clear of the Iranian airspace. A strong tail wind with up to 50 knots contributes to the fact that we land Ras Al Khaimah after just seven hours.
Now: refueling before we leave the airport. From two specially delivered Shell fuel barrels with 200 liters we refilled with the mobile filling station. The equipment strikes as at first adventurous. But the process is handled by the two airport employees in the heat absolutely quietly and professionally (incl. fuel  voluntary test).
We have a quick shower in the hotel before we start to discover Dubai with the help of a local guide: „higher, greater and only absolutely the best“. The fountains in front of the highest building in the world (828 meters) is truly staging. Also forget your ideas about an aquarium in light of this huge glass cube in the neighboring gigantic shopping mall. Here you may feed the sharks in the basin – if you pay a “small entry fee”!! Unfortunately, we do not have so much time: Burj AL Arab hotel, the palm island and the only 7-star hotel in the world are on the program list of our Arabian guide. We recognize the return trip to the hotel only in the half sleep and this does not owe a smooth driving stile of our guide.