H
Harry Hope
Guest
From The Associated Press, 11/12/07:
http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-saudi-luxury-jet,0,7968306.story
Saudi Prince Buying 'Flying Palace' Jet
By BARBARA SURK and ANNA JOHNSON
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -
In the annals of excess, it could be a new high: a more than $300
million dollar, super-sized luxury airplane, bought and outfitted
solely for the private comfort of a Saudi Arabian billionaire.
Once done, the Airbus A380, the world's biggest passenger plane, will
be a "flying palace" for Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, the manufacturer
announced Monday.
Airbus SAS would not give a specific price tag for the VIP
double-decker jet, with its football field-length wings, saying only
that it would cost more than the aircraft's list price of $320
million.
That doesn't even include the money the prince will spend to custom
fit the nearly 6,000-square foot plane to include whatever he wants.
The options include private bedrooms, a movie theater or even a gym
with a jacuzzi.
He'll also need a flight crew of about 15 to operate the luxury liner.
"Prince Alwaleed is the first, and so far the only customer of this
aircraft," said David Velupillai, the spokesman of the Airbus, which
announced the luxury order at the Dubai International Airshow.
It's all just spending cash for bin Talal -- Citigroup Inc.'s biggest
individual shareholder and the world's 13th richest person with assets
around $20 billion.
As a member of the Saudi royal family, he benefits from the country's
vast oil wealth.
But much of bin Talal's huge fortune comes from his investment firm,
the $25-billion Kingdom Holding Co., which has stakes in Rupert
Murdoch's News Corp., Fairmont Raffles Hotels International Inc., Time
Warner Inc., Apple Inc., PepsiCo Inc., Walt Disney Co. to name a few
major corporations.
The prince, who is in his early 50s, appears to have a taste for
super-sized jumbo jets.
He already is the only private owner of a Boeing 747-400, Airbus said.
"It's like buying a new car or a new TV," Velupillai told The
Associated Press.
"One wants something bigger and better."
Airbus would not release many details about bin Talal's VIP A380,
which dwarfs the 747 -- formerly the world's most spacious plane.
Staff who answered the phone at bin Talal's office on Monday in Saudi
Arabia said he was unavailable to comment.
The commercial A380, which made its maiden voyage with Singapore
Airlines last month, is as tall as a seven-story building with each
wing big enough to hold 70 cars.
It is capable of carrying 853 passengers in an all-economy class
configuration.
Take out the seats, and the plane can be transformed into a flying
mansion.
Germany's Lufthansa Technik, which declined to comment Monday on bin
Talal's purchase, has created a general rendering of what a VIP A380
jumbo could include:
spacious bedrooms on the plane's upper deck, separated by a reception
area and a bar next to central stairway.
The master bedroom could include an office, private dinning room, a
gym featuring a steam bath and exercise machines.
The lower decks could feature a lounge-type quarters equipped with a
conference area and dining room.
A third level, normally used for cargo, could be transformed into
another passenger space or cinema.
This type of custom design does not come cheap.
Experts say it could rack the price up by another $50 million to $150
million.
Purchases of private airliners has mushroomed in recent years, but
most orders are in the category of a Learjet or Gulfstream -- small
and cheap at $2 million to $5 million in comparison to the A380, said
David Bain, editor of a British-based online wealth analysis service,
wealth-bulletin.com.
"It seems the Saudis really like these huge planes, and they have the
money to do it," said Bain, who believes about a dozen other
individuals own commercial jets.
"Very few people buy commercial planes. It's a bit over the top."
But he and Airbus expect that number to grow.
The airline company said it expects at least six other A380 VIP jets
to be sold to clients in the Middle East, and Central and South Asia.
__________________________________________________
Harry
http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-saudi-luxury-jet,0,7968306.story
Saudi Prince Buying 'Flying Palace' Jet
By BARBARA SURK and ANNA JOHNSON
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -
In the annals of excess, it could be a new high: a more than $300
million dollar, super-sized luxury airplane, bought and outfitted
solely for the private comfort of a Saudi Arabian billionaire.
Once done, the Airbus A380, the world's biggest passenger plane, will
be a "flying palace" for Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, the manufacturer
announced Monday.
Airbus SAS would not give a specific price tag for the VIP
double-decker jet, with its football field-length wings, saying only
that it would cost more than the aircraft's list price of $320
million.
That doesn't even include the money the prince will spend to custom
fit the nearly 6,000-square foot plane to include whatever he wants.
The options include private bedrooms, a movie theater or even a gym
with a jacuzzi.
He'll also need a flight crew of about 15 to operate the luxury liner.
"Prince Alwaleed is the first, and so far the only customer of this
aircraft," said David Velupillai, the spokesman of the Airbus, which
announced the luxury order at the Dubai International Airshow.
It's all just spending cash for bin Talal -- Citigroup Inc.'s biggest
individual shareholder and the world's 13th richest person with assets
around $20 billion.
As a member of the Saudi royal family, he benefits from the country's
vast oil wealth.
But much of bin Talal's huge fortune comes from his investment firm,
the $25-billion Kingdom Holding Co., which has stakes in Rupert
Murdoch's News Corp., Fairmont Raffles Hotels International Inc., Time
Warner Inc., Apple Inc., PepsiCo Inc., Walt Disney Co. to name a few
major corporations.
The prince, who is in his early 50s, appears to have a taste for
super-sized jumbo jets.
He already is the only private owner of a Boeing 747-400, Airbus said.
"It's like buying a new car or a new TV," Velupillai told The
Associated Press.
"One wants something bigger and better."
Airbus would not release many details about bin Talal's VIP A380,
which dwarfs the 747 -- formerly the world's most spacious plane.
Staff who answered the phone at bin Talal's office on Monday in Saudi
Arabia said he was unavailable to comment.
The commercial A380, which made its maiden voyage with Singapore
Airlines last month, is as tall as a seven-story building with each
wing big enough to hold 70 cars.
It is capable of carrying 853 passengers in an all-economy class
configuration.
Take out the seats, and the plane can be transformed into a flying
mansion.
Germany's Lufthansa Technik, which declined to comment Monday on bin
Talal's purchase, has created a general rendering of what a VIP A380
jumbo could include:
spacious bedrooms on the plane's upper deck, separated by a reception
area and a bar next to central stairway.
The master bedroom could include an office, private dinning room, a
gym featuring a steam bath and exercise machines.
The lower decks could feature a lounge-type quarters equipped with a
conference area and dining room.
A third level, normally used for cargo, could be transformed into
another passenger space or cinema.
This type of custom design does not come cheap.
Experts say it could rack the price up by another $50 million to $150
million.
Purchases of private airliners has mushroomed in recent years, but
most orders are in the category of a Learjet or Gulfstream -- small
and cheap at $2 million to $5 million in comparison to the A380, said
David Bain, editor of a British-based online wealth analysis service,
wealth-bulletin.com.
"It seems the Saudis really like these huge planes, and they have the
money to do it," said Bain, who believes about a dozen other
individuals own commercial jets.
"Very few people buy commercial planes. It's a bit over the top."
But he and Airbus expect that number to grow.
The airline company said it expects at least six other A380 VIP jets
to be sold to clients in the Middle East, and Central and South Asia.
__________________________________________________
Harry
