There's a hole in my bucket

Today the main highway in front of the conference cetre was closed while the paratroopers practised landing on it. They were followed by the impressive Mirage jets, with full afterburners practising fly-pasts.

Long before the major US defence companies began selling to the UAE, Dassault was the leading supplier of fighter jets. It began supplying its Mirage fighters to the Emirates in 1974, a time when Abu Dhabi's streets were unpaved, the UAE capital had its own flag - red and white - and its own air force.

France may be smaller than the US state of Texas but in the world of aerospace and defence it is a giant. It trails only the US in supplying arms to the Gulf, accounting for 35 per cent of purchases between 2005 and 2009 by the UAE, and 21 per cent of all defence sales in the region during the same period.

A major reason France punches above its weight in the defence sector is Dassault Aviation, which will be a major exhibitor at next week's International Defence Exhibition and Conference (IDEX) in Abu Dhabi, the region's largest defence expo.

This afternoon, we were treated to the "Al Fursan" (The Knights) who are the United Arab Emirates Air Force aerobatic display team practising their routine. The team flies seven Aermacchi MB-339A jet trainer aircraft including one solo. Not quite up to Captain Scarlet's Angels standards yet, but getting there.

Meanwhile behind the scenes, the hotel sprung a water leak. It was patched up by the end of the day.