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Like diamonds in the sky

Welcome to the world of exclusive flying

Picture this. You’re kicking it in a soft, leather seat, watching the game on a huge TV. There’s champagne in an ice bucket on a table next to you, and coming up in an elevator behind you is your favourite dish from your own private kitchen. Welcome to the world of exclusive flying and here are six options:

The Gulfstream G650: $64.5 million: Gulfstream Aerospace produces some of the world’s fastest, private jets available in the skies... and the GVI, as its official certificate dubs it, is certainly the way to go if you’re looking for luxury without compromising on speed. Flying just under the speed of sound (0.925 Mach, to be precise), the jet comes in 12 different floor plans, in case, you know, one or two luxury variants aren’t enough. With Oprah Winfrey, director Peter Jackson, and Warren Buffet reportedly in line to buy the $64.5 million jet, it’s no wonder music group Far East Movement wrote a song about “feeling so fly Like A G6”.

Donald Trump’s Boeing 757: $100 million: You know you’ve reached the pinnacle of the business world when you have 24 carat gold-finished seat buckles in your own personal jet. Donald Trump’s Boeing 757, worth just under a reported $100 million, is nothing short of opulence at 30,000 feet, with a marble bathroom, double beds, a lounge, and gold embellished bathroom fixtures. Now we know how Trump’s able to sleep at night after firing all those people on The Apprentice — comfortable, in his private Boeing’s double bedroom!

A Custom Boeing 737: $80 million: Most of us know the 737 as the comfortable passenger jets we flew in, with babies squealing around us. But customised, the jet turns into one of the world’s most luxurious jets. Deer Jet did just that and for a price of about $80 million, the Chinese firm rents it out to the rich who just can’t deal with long airport lines. The luxury version can seat 18 and has personal TVs and a very special kitchen.

Air Force One: Doesn’t POTUS need to lay back once a while, look out his window at the world below him and take a break from worrying about West Asia and unemployment in the United States?No better way to do that than in a $390 million dollar Boeing 747, which is fitted with 87 phones, 19 television sets, beige leather interiors, a private office and, of course, a personal bedroom and bathroom. Oh and don’t forget about the television broadcast studio and world-leading security features as well.

The Sultan of Brunei’s Boeing 747: $100 million: Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah’s bought a Boeing 747-430 for about $100 million. He then spent – wait for it – another $120 million on luxury customisations such as golden washbasins, Lalique crystal installations, custom leather seats, and the works. Because you’re never really a Sultan unless you have a $220 million jet in your garage, next to a Boeing 767 and a couple of other Airbus A340s... are you?

Airbus A380: $487 million: There’s no doubt that the Airbus A380 is the world’s largest and possibly, the best passenger plane. Capable of seating up to 960 people and travelling 15,000 kilometres on one tank of fuel, the jet’s been bought by top luxury airlines like Qatar, Etihad, Lufthansa and Emirates. But Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal al-Saud has reportedly bought one for himself and has converted it into a literal palace in the sky, complete with a marble Turkish bath, a mini-concert hall, a home theatre, a board room, a 14-seater dining room and even a parking area for his Rolls Royce, with an elevator leading him straight from there to his private bedrooms (yes, bedrooms) on the third floor. And all that for just $487 million.

( Source : dc )
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