Biggest private jet

[cforst513]

who has the biggest private jet out there? i know trump has a 727, the prez has a whole fleet of big jets, travolta has a 707 (?), and there are lots of BBJ 737s flying around, but anyone have anything bigger? if i was crown prince of some oil-rich middle eastern country, i'd be chompin' at the bit to get my hands on an A380 to make it my private palace in the sky, or a nice 777-200ER. anyone know of any others?

 

[User546]

I don't know which one's bigger, the 777 or the A340, but one of the Saudi Prince's has a A340 which he uses extensively.

And about a year ago, there was a 747-400 being flown around by a private individual from overseas. I've also seen a couple 747SP's in the day - one was part of the royal family, and another was a big insurance company here in the US.

There's also a handful of 767 and a 777 or two out in the private sector right now. Sorry I don't have any information for you though.

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Buttttttt.... while we're on the subject of the private aircraft. I was down in Dallas a couple weeks ago and was talking to one of the ladies who is a sales executive at one of the "private aircraft furnishing" facilities there. She said that typically they come empty from the factory, and they sit down with the customer and design a custom interior to suit their needs and style.

The figures she gave me though about made me jaw drop.

She said to outfit a new 737 BBJ runs typically in the $20-30 million range.

A new 777 (which they've done one of) ran over $80 million.

And a 747-400 which they were about to receive from an overseas country, was going to run in the $100-120 million range.

Another thing I found interesting was that she said the majority of the costs has to do with the paperwork, and certification tests and paperwork they have to do to get everything ready to go for the customer.

Amazing what some people spend on private aircraft!

 

[O-Line]

Well, let's not get carried away, with size. I flew a guy out to pick up his new 727 a couple of years ago. He showed me around, it was beautiful. Brand new interior, a full bedroom, and shower, was RVSM'd and had hush kits. Total price $8Milliion!

There's a reason the "Trumpster's" 72 isn't worth a quarter of a new G550.

Any idea what 747-100 are going for these days?

 

[say again]

I don't know which one's bigger, the 777 or the A340, but one of the Saudi Prince's has a A340 which he uses extensively.

And about a year ago, there was a 747-400 being flown around by a private individual from overseas. I've also seen a couple 747SP's in the day - one was part of the royal family, and another was a big insurance company here in the US.

There's also a handful of 767 and a 777 or two out in the private sector right now. Sorry I don't have any information for you though.

--------------

Buttttttt.... while we're on the subject of the private aircraft. I was down in Dallas a couple weeks ago and was talking to one of the ladies who is a sales executive at one of the "private aircraft furnishing" facilities there. She said that typically they come empty from the factory, and they sit down with the customer and design a custom interior to suit their needs and style.

The figures she gave me though about made me jaw drop.

She said to outfit a new 737 BBJ runs typically in the $20-30 million range.

A new 777 (which they've done one of) ran over $80 million.

And a 747-400 which they were about to receive from an overseas country, was going to run in the $100-120 million range.

Another thing I found interesting was that she said the majority of the costs has to do with the paperwork, and certification tests and paperwork they have to do to get everything ready to go for the customer.

Amazing what some people spend on private aircraft!

And I broke a$$ poor because I just bought a car for $3500!!! My life truly is pathetic.

 

[mzaharis]

Roman Abromovich (Russian gazillionaire) has a 767-300ER.

Rafik Hariri, the assassinated ex-Lebanese Prime Minister and construction Mogul, had a private (not Lebanese government) 777-200ER with a disco.

A number of 747s, 747SP's, A340s and others floating around the Mideast - given the relationship between the wealthy and government, it's a bit difficult to figure out which ones are "private" and which ones are "Gov't VVIP".

Old airliners are cheap to buy by aircraft terms (here's a listing for a 747-400SP that is "only" 1 mil), pretty expensive ($10 mil MINIMUM - more, if you like solid gold toilets) to complete, and rather expensive to operate and maintain, and have operational limitations (can't take off from those shorter runways at MTOW, no FL430 initial altitudes like in a GV).

http://www.controller.com/listings/forsale/list.asp?catid=3&man=BOEING&mdl=747%2DSP&mdlX=4&guid=985BCA93321C4D74BE5CDD0948C039B6

What does Trump do when his 727 needs its D-check? Scrap it, and buy another?

 

[Cardinal]

The A340 belongs to the Sultan of Brunei, IIRC.

 

[T-REX]

Prince Abdullah had two 747s and a G5 when he visited here a few weeks ago.

 

[Guitar Guy]

A recent article on a completion center in "Aviation International News" said that Airbus has had about half a dozen inquiries about the A380. Supposedly, the a corporate/private A380 would offer over 1700 square feet of living area. That's bigger than the first home I owned!

 

[psysicx]

Does it cost more to operate a BBJ over a Gulfstream?

 

[2000flyer]

Does it cost more to operate a BBJ over a Gulfstream?

I don't have the cost in front of me but what the BBJ uses in fuel cost, it saves in Mx cost. Several years ago I read where Atlas airlines now deceased CEO had a BBJ. A windshield for their old Challenger was $30K. For the BBJ $1500. Similar for brakes. Big reason is parts supply and availability.