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When you have £16billion in the bank, a Cessna is
simply not an option.
Instead, Prince Alwaleed bin Talal al-Saud is about to take delivery of
an Airbus A380, the world’s biggest private jet.
The same model is used by Singapore Airlines and Emirates and can fly
800 passengers 8,000 miles before refuelling. But the Saudi prince
doesn’t need 800 seats, so he will have them removed to make room for an
opulent, marble-finished Turkish bath and a parking space for his
Rolls-Royce.
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The plane will even boast a dedicated prayer area, in which
computer-generated mats move to point towards Mecca.
The Western-educated prince, 57, is known as the Warren Buffett of the
Middle East because of his reputation as a shrewd investor. He also owns
7 per cent of Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation.
The new airliner joins Prince Alwaleed’s stable of private jets,
including a modified Boeing 747 and an Airbus 321. He is also the proud
owner of a 280ft superyacht, 5KR, formerly owned by Donald Trump, which
featured in the Bond film, Never Say Never Again.
The new jet, which has already been labelled the Flying Palace, will
boast:
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A dazzling main spiral staircase as well as a lift which will travel the
plane's three floors and lower onto the tarmac to act as the Prince's
private entrance
A Concert Hall featuring a grand piano, accoustic panelling and seating
for an audience of ten. Big name entertainers are expected to perform.
A Hamam steam room lined with marble only two millimetres thick to keep
the weight down as well as a sensory area for treatments
A magnificent Wellbeing room for guests featuring a giant screen on the
floor allowing them to see what they are flying over
A full size boardroom featuring a large perspex table which doubles as a
huge touchscreen
A total of five luxury suites as well as a prayer room with electronic
mats which automatically turn to face mecca
Ample parking space for a Rolls Royce
Airbus will deliver the extravagant toy to the prince in the New Year, a
spokesman confirmed.
The prince is the first person to buy one of the luxury jumbos,
estimated to have cost £240million.
The spokesman said: ‘This is the most up-to-date model you can get and
the largest civil aircraft ever. It’s huge – half again as big as a
747.’
The Airbus will be delivered to the prince ‘green’ – a basic shell ready
to be furnished to the client’s desires.
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Design Q, the company working on the interior, says the A380 is ‘not
only the most luxurious aircraft in existence, but also reflects the
cultural values and status of its owner’.
The plane boasts the equivalent of three tennis courts’ worth of floor
space, while the lowest cargo deck also has ample parking room.
A grand white spiral staircase will greet guests in the entrance hall.
On arrival a lift drops to the runway and a red carpet unfurls, with
downlights to ‘give the impression of turning up at the Oscars’,
according to Design Q.
The belly of the A380 has been turned into a relaxation zone, including
a Turkish bath lined with marble only 2mm thick to keep the weight down.
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Next door is a wellbeing room, with the floor and walls turned into a
giant screen showing the ground below.
Guests can stand on a ‘magic carpet’ and watch the journey, a scented
breeze blowing into the room.
There are also about 20 ‘sleepers’ – the equivalent of First Class seats
– a boardroom and a concert hall.
As the largest stakeholder in News Corp outside the Murdoch Family,
Prince Alalweed was interviewed on the deck of his yacht in Cannes by
the BBC following the phone tapping scandal.
Looking relaxed in a pair of shorts and sunglasses he famously declared
that News Corp's then chief executive Rebekah Brooks 'has to go', which
many believe effectively ended Brooks's career at the company.
A spokesman for Design Q, the Worcestershire-based company who will be
carrying out the customisation of the plane, told the Independent the
plane would be 'not only the most luxurious aircraft in existence, but
also reflects the cultural values and status of its owner.' |