Heat Three Airmageddon

Welcome to Airmageddon, TV's ultimate test of airborne skill...

-Get out the way!

-..and radio controlled mayhem.

32 teams of wannabe aviators from across the UK...

Yeah!

..will do battle in the Airena, with their customised drones.

-Only those with the skill...

-Yes!

..the luck and the aerial courage will make it through.

You're going to have a roflcopter of a time -

it's Airmageddon!

BOTH: Hello!

Welcome to Airmageddon.

Stand by for more sensational drone on drone action

here in our flying circus.

Yes, our purpose built Airena has become the big top

of three-dimensional entertainment,

featuring aerial acrobatics the envy of any flying trapeze.

Does that make you, Will, our resident clown?

No, Rachel! I think you'll find I'm the wingmaster.

-No, no, I think I'll stick to clown.

-I'll ignore that.

But you can't ignore four teams, three rounds of action,

or the fact that one of our teams will be flying through

to the series semifinals.

BOTH: It's time to send in the drones.

Through the mighty hangar doors first are the Phoenix Flyers -

James and his wingwoman Kirsty.

Next to emerge are Team Colossus - Nicholas and wingman Jonah.

Then the Flying Foxes fly through the door, Rohan and Dhruv.

And finally, Rune and Paul are Skywolf. Cool name.

Here are our brave aviators.

Are you guys all ready to take on Airmageddon?

-ALL: Yeah!

-Excellent.

Well, here's PIG with the lowdown on the first of the challenges

that they'll face.

Let's take a look then, Piggy. We all know the Airsault Course by now.

We should do. Up through the first of the four gates,

that are roughly the width of two washing machines,

round the pillars,

through the letterbox,

another gate, foggy corridor, gate,

take a spin cycle through the vortex,

another pillar and then you're home and dry.

Good luck, everyone.

And of course, they also have to avoid the flight paths

and the flight wraths of our resident drones.

Let's find out who'll be up there with them.

-AIR MARSHALL:

-Scan the selector.

It's the DRAGON.

Oh, it's the daddy of them all. Big, bad and rarer than unicorn poo,

it's the mighty DRAGON.

Let's see if the first team can escape the Airsault Course unsinged.

It's Team Colossus.

Team Colossus consists of best friends Nicholas and wingman Jonah.

Both of them are sporty and enjoy triathlons,

and Nicholas would love the superpower of being a shapeshifter.

I'm a bit of a shapeshifter myself.

Last week I ate six burgers and my belly turned into a basketball.

They started the mind games early

by painting a scary skull on their drone.

This may come in handy if they're hoping to make it through

to the dogfight, but I doubt it'll scare the DRAGON.

Nicholas and Jonah, you're kicking off the show.

How confident are you on a scale of one to ten?

-Uh, about one to seven.

-Anywhere between one and seven.

-Yeah!

-Nice and broad.

Wingman, it's your job to keep his confidence high.

How are you going to make sure that he's at seven or higher?

I'll give him instructions and encourage him.

Yeah, that's good, be encouraging.

I think you guys are going to make a good team.

Are you ready to get out there and wreak some mayhem?

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-Absolutely, all right, then, guys. Aviators, stand by.

Fire up your motors.

Rev up your rotors.

You're cleared for takeoff!

So, here we go, let's see what colossus have for us today.

-AIR MARSHALL:

-Colossus launch in three, two, one.

And they're up. So, Nicholas has aspirations to be a fighter pilot -

if he finishes the Airsault Course he can put that on his CV.

Walk round more so you can see the bit aligning.

Nice and calm directions from Jonah, there.

As best friends, these two will have the advantage of good communication.

Sometimes I can just look at my best friend

and he knows exactly what I want.

It's usually a biscuit, to be honest.

I mean, look at me. You can't see me.

Mind the first pole, mind the first pole.

Bit low there, Colossus. Be careful.

Knocked over a mic stand, nothing wrong with that.

We'll be invoicing you if it's damaged, Colossus.

Just teasing.

Or am I?

They could do with going a bit faster.

Easy for me to say, though.

Now it's time to face the letterboxes,

which they do very carefully.

-Down, down.

-These letterboxes are tricky.

They're oblong and the drones aren't oblong.

I bet they wish they could shift their shape into that of a letter.

Then they could post themselves through all the letterboxes,

ha-ha-ha.

Oh, shush.

Now go up. And go up through there

Up... Yeah, forward.

That's the gate ticked off their to-do list.

Now, it's time to get foggy.

Now, this bit, you need to be careful.

Very.

Go lower down so you can see.

Go lower down.

Nicholas, there, taking Jonah's instructions very literally.

I've never seen that before.

Dropped to his knees.

Did he mean the drone, not the pilot?

He probably gets a better view of the course down there.

Whatever tactic for the team works, though, really.

And he's back up - I'd definitely put this on his CV

for fighter pilot school. This is some quality droning here.

Mind the bottom of the hoop.

Bit cautious on The Gate but no real drama.

Now keep going round.

Now to The Vortex. OK, this bit, you need to be careful.

Absolutely, The Vortex does not take any prisoners.

It might be easier to look lower down with this one as well.

Come round.

Oh, he's been blown out of The Vortex,

the winds whirling around in there really make life hard.

You've got to get into the centre to get out.

Too low, that's the floor.

Straight up The Vortex, nicely done.

Forward now.

Just the last gate now, no sign of the DRAGON.

-Where is he?

-Move!

There he is! Enter the DRAGON. Is he looking the wrong way?

What's he going to do?

Takes the drone round the last pillar and goes for the line!

Good droning!

A slow and steady move around

the course AND managed to knock

over a microphone stand to give us

something to talk about afterwards.

Team Colossus, come in! Oh, my gosh! That was good! How did it feel?

-I was very, very nervous.

-Were you?

-Yeah.

Why do you think you were so nervous?

-I thought I completely wrecked the drone.

-When was that?

When I knocked over the microphone -

I think it was a microphone - and when I hit the pillar.

But other than that, I think it's OK.

Rising from the ashes are the Phoenix Flyers,

who are James and his wing-mum, Kirsty.

They are a very aeronautical family

as his dad flies helicopters.

James is also a go-karting champion and a keen magician.

Their scary drone was designed

to look aggressive and mean! Job done.

Their name came from an imaginary shop

James invented when he was young.

Let's hope it sold courage, determination and success.

James and Kirsty, Phoenix Flyers. Welcome to the control tower.

The DRAGON is out there waiting for you,

but you're a phoenix so that shouldn't cause too many problems.

-Well, we can always fight fire with fire.

-That's very true!

-Fighting talk, I like it!

-JAMES LAUGHS

Are you ready to do that, then? Are you ready to get out there and fly?

-Yes, absolutely!

-Excellent, all right then. Aviators, stand by.

Fire up your motors, rev up your rotors, you're clear for takeoff.

James also wants to be a fighter pilot.

It would be interesting to see him and Nicholas in the Dogfight.

AIR MARSHALL: Launch in three, two, one.

Slowly, slowly. That's it.

-But it's anyone's game!

-Move round.

Wing-mum straight in there communicating from the get-go.

And go through slowly, that's it.

Don't mind the other one, he'll get out your way.

That's a very quick time through the gate. That Phoenix can fly.

Lower. Look for your shadow.

The Phoenix over the flames, nice!

I was just about to say that, Will! Oh!

Really was looking forward to saying it, actually.

I might just say it anyway. No, I'd sound stupid, we've done it now.

The Phoenix looking very dramatic there over those flames, ha-ha!

Looking cool there.

Doing well. Look for your shadow on the floor as you go.

OK, let's pick up on the approach to the Foggy Corridor here.

Literally cannot see anything.

I... I know. I can't see anything either.

I'm guessing.

Oooh! Hit one of the posts!

-The Foggy Corridor doing it's job as he hits a post!

-That's it!

You can see visibility is a problem here! Or rather you CAN'T see!

Slowly, slowly. Line yourself up with the hoop. That's it.

-This is looking pretty good though.

-Perfect, good boy.

-A nice time, here.

-Down towards us.

Don't forget you've got to be underneath the red lines.

Here we go. Into The Vortex.

Under the red lines. That's it. And then...

-Straight up through the top.

-Up, up and away.

That's great, he's done it. That was very quick.

Straight through the hoop.

That's it.

DRAGON versus Phoenix.

I hope our resident drone isn't going soft on Phoenix because

they're both mythical creatures.

Our viewers want to see burning drones, not hugs and cuddles, kids!

..fly towards the finishing line, and then land.

They're across the line. Great teamwork from the Phoenix Flyers.

An assured performance.

Let's see the Phoenix flying through those flames again,

very nice pictures there.

James! You made that look so easy! Was it that easy?

Well, I did hit one of the pillars

and I almost went into the flame, but that's pretty much it.

-Nothing troubled you, did it?

-No.

Time confirmed.

Looking at the first leaderboard,

we see that the Phoenix Flyers are in first place with a decent 1:55,

while Colossus are in the Drop Zone on 2:54.

OK, so the Flying Foxes are Rohan

and his wing-bruv, Dhruv.

Rohan is a bit of an inventor and recently invented

a paper plane launcher

and a battery powered tin can cable cart.

I wonder if he's got any secret weapons on his drone?

Some DRAGON repellent would be very useful right now, actually.

Their drone was spray painted with some rather whiffy car paint

and the brothers added lights to dazzle opponents.

Rohan and Dhruv. Now, I imagine you've been training hard

-for this day, right?

-Yes.

Like a lot of time in the gym, a diet of nothing but raw eggs,

what have you been doing?

I've been training really hard with my drones at home,

flying in and out of bushes, under things, over things,

-knocking things down.

-Oh, my goodness. Brilliant!

That sounds amazing. And have you been there with him the whole time?

I've been telling him where to go and what to do.

Excellent. I bet you've been enjoying that. Nice one, guys.

Well, it sounds to me like you are ready to fly!

So, Aviators, stand by!

Fire up your motors, rev up your rotors,

you're clear for takeoff!

Right, let's see if these Foxes can fly.

Flying Foxes launch in three, two, one.

And here they go. Straight up and heading for the first gate.

-Left, left.

-The Foxes have started well here.

-Forward, forward.

-Bzzz!

We're obviously missing resident drone, the WASP!

Let's pick it up after the Letterboxes.

They now must face the second gate or the Gate of Hate as I call it!

-Down.

-Yeah, guys, I wouldn't get too close to the Air Marshall.

He really likes his own space.

Very mysterious and enigmatic is our Air Marshall.

What does he do when he's not here? Nobody knows.

-Right, go forwards, forwards.

-What's his favourite colour? Nobody knows.

Down the Foggy Corridor, staying low is a good tactic, actually.

Visibility is slightly better down there.

Someone needs to tell them they don't have wheels.

I could, Will, but you're right next to them.

So it's much easier if you tell them, mate, if you don't mind.

Up, up, up.

-And forwards.

-Here we go. Through the gate.

All right, you're down, you're up.

Uh-oh, the DRAGON's in the air.

He looks hungry!

And where might you be going, Air Marshall?

AIR MARSHALL: I'm just stretching my wings.

Well, there's a time and a place for that, Air Marshall.

AIR MARSHALL: I was getting cramp.

Well, I very much doubt it, mate.

AIR MARSHALL: You humans have no sympathy for drones.

-Now, you know that's not true.

-Through the hoop, remember.

Anyway, the Foxes face The Vortex and head through the final gate.

-Don't crash!

-Obviously.

-Go back.

They drop down and...

-Why's he waiting over there?

-Is this a drone problem?

-That would be very frustrating at this stage!

-Back! Oh, oh!

No, it's all fine. Through the final posts and over the line! Very good.

Yay!

So the Foxes keep it low

but not slow for their run of the Airsault Course there.

It's the Flying Foxes! Come in, guys!

Rohan, that was easy, yes?

-Yep!

-Yes, I think so!

-Dhruv, what did you think of it out there?

-Er, quite simple, yeah.

Was there anything out there which you found quite tricky?

The postboxes were because when the flames were going,

like, the shadows are quite hard to find.

Time confirmed.

So, the Flying Foxes now slot into second place

with a time of 2:30, keeping Colossus in the Drop Zone.

Let's see how Sky Wolf get on. Woof.

Drone loving son and father team, Sky Wolf

Rune and Paul dance like nutters

and enjoy music and fishing.

Rune and Paul started painting their drone in the house

but they made such a mess

that they were banished to the garden shed to finish it.

-Looks like these are the bad guys in today's episode.

-It's Sky Wolf!

-Rune, how're you feeling about this?

-Nervous and excited.

That's good, man! Now that you're up here

and you're taking a good look at it, which bit of the course

-are you most nervous about?

-The Vortex and the Letterboxes.

Guys, I think we need to get you up in the air and out on the course,

so, Aviators, standby!

Fire up your motors, rev up your rotors, you're clear for takeoff.

Let's see this Wolf take to the skies!

Launch in three, two, one.

Going last in the Airsault Course

means we know exactly what time they have to beat.

-Beautiful.

-They don't, though.

Rune finding it difficult to control his drone.

Remember these drones are the size of a washing machine,

-they're not small.

-God, this is so hard!

We picked this one up at Vortex.

It has been a slow and steady ride so far.

There's Rachel with the rest of the teams watching on.

Will they all go through, or will one of them get the drop? Who knows?

Oh! Mind the Air Marshall!

He really had to scoot out of the way there, that was close!

Good to see the Air Marshall kept on his toes!

-AIR MARSHALL:

-I have no toes, I have a motor, rotors and landing gear.

It's a figure of speech, Marshy.

There's a wolf behind you!

AH! Is that what you humans describe as humour?

I would be laughing if I had the correct plug-in to do so.

-Spin left.

-All right, shh, shh! I'm really going to concentrate now.

Rune is subtly signalling to his father there. "Shut up, Dad!"

-Up, up, up, up!

-And across the line they go!

-That's it, lad!

The DRAGON taking a look.

I'm afraid it's too late to burn them now, mate.

Sky Wolf did a bit of crazy dancing around the course

but made it home in one piece. That's good!

-Did you enjoy it?

-Yes.

-Because you were talking a lot,

but mainly to tell your wing-dad to be quiet!

-THEY LAUGH

-Yeah.

-Was that...

Were you not expecting him to be giving you so much feedback?

-Yeah, well, I was but I really had to concentrate on some bits.

-Yeah?

Because I really got confused with those boxes and the other

-drone flying around.

-Yeah. Well, it's a difficult challenge, this,

to get round the Airsault Course.

Do you think you've done enough to get through?

-BOTH: Yeah.

-OK.

-Well, Air Marshall, let's find out.

-Time confirmed.

So, Phoenix Flyers were the quickest today with a time of 1:55,

second were the Flying Foxes with 2:30,

Colossus were third with a time of 2:54

and by a whisker of 15 seconds, Sky Wolf are grounded.

-3.09!

-Ah, well.

-There was only a few seconds in it!

Aww! Unlucky.

-Yeah? But did you enjoy going round?

-Yeah.

And you got to fly a drone over a flame-thrower.

So, I mean, every cloud, yeah? You look like you've had a good time!

Yeah.

I'm afraid, though, I do have to say,

Sky Wolf, you guys are grounded!

So, I can confirm that Sky Wolf got 3:09!

TEAM COLOSSUS: YES!

So, it puts them into fourth place

which means everybody down here is going through!

THEY CHEER

Yeah, guys!

So, we've had to say farewell to Sky Wolf

because three teams fared a whole lot better than they did.

They're already prepping for the next challenge! Game's up, PIG!

What is it?

Right then, this is The Drop. Electromagnets and large payloads.

This round is all about activating and de-activating magnets.

Activate the magnet to collect the payload,

deactivate the magnet to deliver the payload into the Drop Zone.

The team with the most loads

gets the five second advantage in the Dogfight!

The team with the least is grounded!

The BUGS are back and I can tell you

they practice by annoying me in the canteen. Little blighters!

The game has been set by our ground crew

and all pre-flight checks have been concluded.

We only need our pilots now, and here they are! But are they ready?

-ALL: YEAH!

-Excellent stuff.

OK, guys, now, in case you've forgotten,

the loser of this challenge will be grounded.

The winner goes through to the Dogfight

with a five second advantage.

So there is a lot to play for. Are we all ready?

-Yeah!

-We want to do some flying?

-PILOTS: Yeah!

All right then, Aviators, stand by!

Fire up your motors, rev up your rotors, you're clear for takeoff!

Let's get ready to drop!

Launch in three, two, one.

Into the air fly the Foxes, the Phoenix and Colossus.

Electromagnets are primed and ready to go.

Now this game really does take all the concentration

of both players in each team.

They have to be so accurate that to make a mistake

will result in catastrophe!

Oh, such as that!

Are you kidding me?! They literally just shoved it off there!

I'm sorry, James. I'm not kidding you!

-You did just literally shove it off!

-I'm going to go for the middle one.

The middle one? I'd have gone for the furthest first

and worked my way in, but what do I know?

-Yeah, I've got it, I've got it!

-Oh!

-Nearly had it! Oh, no!

And it's plunged to the floor like a blancmange falling off a table!

-No payloads yet!

-Oh, my magnet's swinging too much!

Who is going to be first to get a score in? And another one drops!

Like I said, tricky but they just ain't sticky!

-Colossus looking good there. Oh! They've overshot!

-Ahhh!

Gets himself into a good position here,

electromagnets are engaged and they're up!

-Go for the middle one now.

-Steady now, take your time.

Wing-mum has to keep the magnet engaged here.

-You need to watch the shadow.

-Steady! Steady!

-Yes, they've done it!

-Ah, we have one! We have one!

Yes, we have one!

-Now go back and get some more!

-They've got one in.

The Foxes now seem to have got one! Come on then, over you come! Oh, no!

Remember it's all about those payloads! Get dropping, guys!

There's the BUGS there.

I wonder if they're doing their job and putting off the Aviators

like they do with me and my lunch?

And that's what's stopping them

from being able to tack onto any of the payloads.

-Pesky bugs!

-Come on, come on, Nicholas!

And another one goes!

They're dropping everywhere here except where they're supposed to!

-Oh, so intense!

-Don't worry, it is intense. Don't worry.

It certainly is!

-Down!

-No!

Oh, no! Another one drops to the floor!

-I would say this is the hardest game in Airmageddon.

-I agree, Will.

You've got to be so precise with those magnets.

-Steady, steady, steady! Oh, no!

-And there goes another one!

It's so frustrating for the teams!

They're all great at knocking them off

but no-one is great at carrying them, it's fair to say.

Phoenix Flyers looking safe with their one payload, though!

That's good, that's good! Ah, so close! No!

Ohh! There can't be much time left!

Will anyone else be able to deliver a payload here?

-Nudge it, no! Ohh!

-Are you kidding?! It caught it on the way up!

Don't worry, no-one else has got one yet.

I'm not even sure there's actually time to complete a delivery!

-AIR MARSHALL:

-Ten seconds remain, ten, nine...

Nope, here we go. Can anyone... Please, someone!

-AIR MARSHALL:

-..five, four, three...

-No! It's not happening. AIR MARSHALL:

-..one.

Oh, that... Oh!

-Wow, that was tense.

-That was so tricky!

A real struggle for the teams, that one!

But Phoenix Flyers are through with their one successful drop.

Oh, my goodness! What a tough challenge that was!

I mean, it looked incredibly difficult,

but also incredibly exciting!

There were so many near misses, you kept nearly getting the payloads!

But in the end, only one team successfully

got any payloads into the targets.

But let's just check with the Air Marshall

exactly what happens next, because this is exciting stuff.

Air Marshall.

So, after Round Two,

the Phoenix Flyers get their five second advantage in the Dogfight.

The Flying Foxes also go through

due to their faster time in the Airsault Course

as per the Airmageddon rules

which means unfortunately, it's time to say goodbye to Colossus.

Wow, the Air Marshall has spoken, OK.

So, Phoenix Flyers, you are officially through to the Dogfight.

-Yes!

-With that five second advantage.

-Flying Foxes, you guys have gone through...

-YES!

..on the strength of your Airsault Course run.

So I can tell you're pretty pleased about that.

Unfortunately, Team Colossus,

you were great contenders but you are grounded.

Have you enjoyed the Airmageddon experience?

-Yeah, it's been really, really fun.

-Good.

-Well you've been a great sport. What about you?

-Yeah, it's great.

I'm glad we got through, though. We got quite far.

So, time for the finale. The endgame.

A ferocious battle for supremacy

using state of the art targeting technology.

Let's see our two surviving teams fight it out in the Dogfight!

That's right, it's the Dogfight.

Everyone knows what this is all about.

Rise up, activate your weapons by passing through the gate

and then things get a little nasty.

Four direct hits on your opponent wins a place in the semifinal.

Good luck out there, guys.

Two surviving teams but only one place in the semifinal

is available so there really is everything to fly for.

As always, our resident drones are going to be patrolling

the no-fly zone, keeping order,

ensuring no-one strays too far away from the combat zone.

Let's find out who's up there with them.

Spin the selector.

The WASP.

He's big and he's yellow and he's a mighty scary fellow.

The WASP is here and he's street tough!

So, guys, if you do stray into the no-fly zone,

the Wasp will be waiting and he might engage.

And that is not something we recommend, but this is the Dogfight!

So, Flying Foxes, I want to know,

are you going to keep your guard up

or are you going to go lasers out, going for it?

We're going to keep our guard up

and we're just going to win this competition.

-TIM AND RACHEL: Ooh!

-Aw, OK. That's good.

What about you, James?

Have you got any final words for your opponents

before you go into this Dogfight?

Watch out! We're coming! THEY LAUGH

OK, then. Fighting talk! That can only mean one thing!

Let's get ready for the Dogfight! Aviators, stand by!

Calibrate your sights, complete your pre-flight checks,

you're clear for takeoff!

Phoenix Flyers Launch in three, two, one!

So, Phoenix are in the air.

Launch in three, two, one!

Followed five seconds later by the Foxes.

Targeting system engaged.

Both are now in the Airena and Phoenix fires first,

but it's a miss!

The Foxes don't know what to do!

What will Phoenix do?

-They fire, it's a hit!

-Oh, no!

-Well done!

-We got them!

-We got one, Mum!

-I know!

That's right! Three more like that and you've won!

Let's see what the Foxes do now

as the sparks shower down from The WASP! Pow!

That was a hit for the cunning Foxes!

I love it when we get a bit of slow-mo.

That's quite a bit of smoke there.

Are they auditioning to be the Foggy Corridor?

Phoenix fire but it's a miss.

2-1 to the Foxes! Let's see that again! Great manoeuvring!

Phoenix tries to get one in, but it didn't happen there.

Foxes bobbing and weaving, ducking and diving...

Great evasive action!

So difficult to hit here.

They've struck again though! It's 3-1 now!

Look at all that smoke! I'm glad I'm not out there, I'd be choking!

Ha-ha. Each team now probing the other's defences.

The Foxes' gaming skills could be proving the difference here.

Shoot.

OH! Careful of the tower, mate!

AHH! That nearly came IN HERE!

Yes, Rachel! Scary stuff!

The Foxes come round. And, whammo, it's a strike!

The last strike, to be precise! Well played, Team Flying Foxes.

-Foxes go through as team Phoenix goes down in flames.

-We won!

-Ah!

-Gosh.

-Fast and furious to say the least.

Everything was happening there, wasn't it? Yeah.

OK, I think we know what happened,

but shall we get confirmation from the Air Marshall?

-Air Marshall, over to you.

-Dogfight scores confirmed.

Despite having the advantage in scoring first,

Phoenix were unable to hold on,

and the frisky Foxes reeled off four winning shots.

The Flying Foxes, you took all four of the Phoenix Flyers' lives

but you only lost one yourselves.

So you are the winners, congratulations, guys!

-How are you feeling, Rohan?

-I'm just... I've got no words in me.

-Well done, guys. Brilliant stuff!

-Great flying, guys!

Unfortunately, because all of your lives did get taken,

that means that, Phoenix Flyers, you are grounded,

but James, have you had a good experience

coming in and being an Aviator on Airmageddon?

Yeah, I have. I've had an absolutely brilliant time.

-You did really well.

-I just wish them luck for everyone.

Brilliant, thanks, what a great sport,

-you sound be very proud wing-mum.

-Yes, I am, really proud.

-We've had a great day, so thanks so much.

-Excellent, well done, guys.

You guys did do brilliantly,

but you, the Flying Foxes, are into the semifinal

so congratulations, boys.

But for now it is time for Airmageddon to power down.

And for these guys to step up.

My Airmageddon experience has been awesome.

God, this is so hard!

My one tip for flying drones is don't crash!

We won!

Airmageddon Power Down.