LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Las Vegas tourists should not run in fear as 150 “Pyrodrones” shoot sparks 400 feet above the Tropicana demolition site next week — because it’s all part of the show.
The aerial pyrotechnic drone show, scheduled for Wednesday morning, has approval from the Federal Aviation Administration, according to Phil Grucci, CEO and president of Fireworks by Grucci, who is involved in the Tropicana demolition show.
“There’s actually 550 LED drones and 150 Pyrodrones. It’s a combination of both,” Grucci said. “We have a team that just started … to assemble that as well as the pyrotechnics on the building, the fireworks, and the drones.”
Most of the images set to display for seven minutes above the Tropicana at 2:30 a.m. Wednesday are a secret, but Grucci said he was recently allowed to let NewsNation affiliate KLAS behind the curtain of the show.
“(You’ll) see certainly the Tropicana logo in the sky, a tribute to the A’s, the Welcome to Las Vegas sign,” he said. “Bally’s has given us a beautiful black canvas to work with, the two fantastic props of the two towers of the Tropicana to work with as our stage.”
Fireworks by Grucci is not new to the use of drones on an international stage after its Guinness World Record for “longest straight-line drone display.” The show in Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates, showcased the recent use of the company’s trademarked “Pyrodrone” technology, but now, it’s ready for use in the United States, according to Grucci.
“We’ve just gotten, just a year ago, the exemption from the FAA in the United States to attach pyrotechnics to drones,” he said.
Grucci said the Tropicana demolition’s audience should keep an eye out for a large aerial detonator image displayed in the sky. Its plunger coming down will be timed with the countdown of the demolition of the Tropicana’s two hotel towers.
“It’s key that we don’t over smoke it, so you don’t miss the buildings and the beauty of the implosion itself, and that farewell to these beautiful structures,” Grucci said. “Bally’s has really pulled out the stops to make sure that the event has that class, but also has that entertainment capital the world feels in Las Vegas.”
The price tag for the show is a bit more technical, according to Grucci, who deferred the answer to Bally’s, which is paying for the show.
“They’re providing this as a gift to the community,” he said. “We’re not at the luxury to let everybody know what the gift cost. You know, you take the tag off the gift, right?”
The hope for the pyrotechnical drone and firework show is to get the audience to keep their eyes on the sky for a positive moment, according to Grucci.
“For those six to seven minutes of entertainment, they’re not looking at their phone,” he said. “It’s a moment where people are really enjoying themselves, and you’re probably with your family and friends, and it’s a memory you’ll walk away with.”
The demolition of the Tropicana will be shown live on KLAS.