Saudi Billionaire buys $400 million Airbus. Intends to have it modified.

[Al-Gebra]

prince alwalid bin talal ( a cousin of algebra bin halal, j/k) . . . bought it for personal use.  It's a monster of an airplane . . .

 that kind of money is mind-boggling . . . if configured right, the plane can carry 800 people easily.

[Nordic Superman]

Personally I'd rather pay for one of these (+ training): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SR-71_Blackbird

[BayGBM]

I heard about this.  That is gonna be one fine ride!

[Parker]

prince alwalid bin talal ( a cousin of algebra bin halal, j/k) . . . bought it for personal use.  It's a monster of an airplane . . .

 that kind of money is mind-boggling . . . if configured right, the plane can carry 800 people easily.

That amount of money could cure hunger in several countries. It's funny how Western  individuals tend to give a lot to causes, but the Middle Eastern Millioniares and billioniares tend to not give that much.

[JasonH]

That amount of money could cure hunger in several countries. It's funny how Western  individuals tend to give a lot to causes, but the Middle Eastern Millioniares and billioniares tend to not give that much.

It's all relative - there's probably fewer charities in the Middle East compared to Western countries and there's also fewer multi-millionaires in the Middle East than in western countries. The rich-poor divide is even greater out there.

[BayGBM]

That amount of money could cure hunger in several countries. It's funny how Western  individuals tend to give a lot to causes, but the Middle Eastern Millioniares and billioniares tend to not give that much.

How do you know this?  Where is your evidence for making this assertion?

I’m always suspicious of people who criticize the amount and kind of philanthropy of others.  Who are any of us to do this?  If you are putting your own money where your mouth is and supporting the causes you are passionate about that is all you need concern yourself with.  It is not anyone’s place to say what someone else should do in terms of charitable giving.  I remember that when Oprah opened her Leadership Academy for Girls many people criticized her.

•  why didn’t she do this in the US?
•  why didn’t she open a similar school for boys?
•  why open a school at all when there are so many other causes that need her money (health care, poverty, for example)?
The list of criticisms went on and on.  Not surprisingly, her critics had, themselves, done little in the way of charitable giving.

Many people were quick to offer criticism but slow (or too lazy) to bother learning why she opened the school.  Years ago, in a private conversation with her friend and mentor, Nelson Mandela, she asked him what she could do for him.  He asked her to build him a school.  That was the genesis for the Leadership Academy.  I doubt any of Oprah’s critics have the moral standing to question Nelson Mandela.

Finally, a lot of charitable giving is done anonymously so we may never know what some people choose to support and how much.

[WOOO]

idiot countries that tolerate leaders that who waste money on stupid things like huge private planes or wars in iraq should all be banished to the bottom of the sea.... (new orleans was just the start...  )

[Camel Jockey]

It's his money, so let him do whatever..

I don't see people bitching about Paul Allen and his habits of buying sports teams and massive custom built 400 foot boats. 

And the prince got rich off of his investments mainly.. He didn't get everything because he was a prince. I doubt every member of the saudi royal family gets several hundred million to blow on fancy planes. 

[WOOO]

It's his money, so let him do whatever..

I don't see people bitching about Paul Allen and his habits of buying sports teams and massive custom built 400 foot boats. 

And the prince got rich off of his investments mainly.. He didn't get everything because he was a prince. I doubt every member of the saudi royal family gets several hundred million to blow on fancy planes. 

they invest in towel stocks...

[BayGBM]

It's his money, so let him do whatever..

I don't see people bitching about Paul Allen and his habits of buying sports teams and massive custom built 400 foot boats. 

And the prince got rich off of his investments mainly.. He didn't get everything because he was a prince. I doubt every member of the saudi royal family gets several hundred million to blow on fancy planes. 

Word.

[Camel Jockey]

they invest in towel stocks...

No, that Bin Talal guy invests in western hotels and western banks(like citigroup). hahaha

Seriously, you guys come from a free market society, so do you get upset over something like this? This is something to admire and look up to. Capitalism, baby.

[MB_722]

No, that Bin Talal guy invests in western hotels and western banks(like citigroup). hahaha

Seriously, you guys come from a free market society, so do you get upset over something like this? This is something to admire and look up to. Capitalism, baby.

lol true. I remember seeing this guy on CNBC, he's loaded

PARIS: Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal has become the first person to buy the ultimate status symbol – his own A380 superjumbo.
Airbus named the Saudi royal, whose interests span hotels and banking to the operator of Disneyland Paris, as the mystery buyer of a VIP version dubbed the Flying Palace.
The buyer’s identity had been secret for months but was unveiled to coincide with the Dubai air show yesterday.
The price of the deal was not disclosed. Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich recently denied buying the plane, which costs over $300mn to ordinary airlines.
Prince Alwaleed confirmed the order despite seeing $2.5bn wiped off his personal fortune in the past month due to a slide in the shares of US banking group Citigroup.
Prince Alwaleed owns around 95% of Kingdom, which in turn owns 3.6% of the US banking giant, reeling from subprime mortgage losses and the global credit crisis.
He is the world’s 13th richest person, according to Forbes magazine, and Citigroup’s largest individual shareholder.
He already owns a Boeing 747-400, the newest type of the original jumbo jet currently in service.
The Airbus superjumbo has been hit by production delays but entered service with Singapore Airlines last month.
It can seat 525 passengers in three classes or more than 800 in an all-economy layout, by using less space between seats.
Leg room will not be a problem on the Flying Palace, which has 551sq m of floor space — enough to hold the ballroom of London’s Savoy Hotel, which Alwaleed owns.
The A380 can be fitted with cocktail bars, casinos, showers and sleeping quarters for first class passengers on ordinary airlines. But for the super-rich, the sky is the limit.
“It would depend very much on what sort of cabin interior the purchaser wanted,” an Airbus official said this year. “On our VIP jets we offer the option to include whatever they want.”
Aviation experts say it is only a matter of time before big spenders like Chelsea soccer club owner Abramovich are courted by Airbus and rival Boeing.
Sales of private jets are booming amid security concerns.
Boeing has three VIP clients who have bought five of its latest giant, the 747-8 Intercontinental which is due to enter service with airlines in 2010, a Boeing spokesman said.
A nephew of King Abdullah, Prince Alwaleed began investing after graduating from California’s Menlo College in 1979.
A year later, he received a $300,000 loan from Saudi American Bank, now known as Samba, which was run by Citicorp, according to his biography.
The prince invested $590mn in Citicorp in 1991 at a time when the bank needed cash as it struggled with Latin American loan losses and a collapse in US real-estate prices. That stake is now worth about $6bn.
l Saudi businessman Tarek bin Laden, half-brother of Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, became the first customer to sign up for the $80mn Aerion supersonic business jet yesterday.
The retirement in 2003 of the Concorde, which ferried the rich and famous across the Atlantic for 27 years at speeds up to 2,625 kph, has opened a new market niche for planes faster than current business jets, Aerion believes.
“Initial demand for the Aerion jet will come from Europe and the Middle East,” said Niall Olver, chief executive of ExecuJet, which will handle marketing of the plane outside the US. ExecuJet is looking for 40 customers with deposits of $250,000 each. – Reuters

[kh300]

as long as he doesnt modify it to fly into the empire state building, then let him have his fun

[Camel Jockey]

as long as he doesnt modify it to fly into the empire state building, then let him have his fun

hahahaha! 

[Parker]

How do you know this?  Where is your evidence for making this assertion?

I’m always suspicious of people who criticize the amount and kind of philanthropy of others.  Who are any of us to do this?  If you are putting your own money where your mouth is and supporting the causes you are passionate about that is all you need concern yourself with.  It is not anyone’s place to say what someone else should do in terms of charitable giving.  I remember that when Oprah opened her Leadership Academy for Girls many people criticized her.

•  why didn’t she do this in the US?
•  why didn’t she open a similar school for boys?
•  why open a school at all when there are so many other causes that need her money (health care, poverty, for example)?
The list of criticisms went on and on.  Not surprisingly, her critics had, themselves, done little in the way of charitable giving.

Many people were quick to offer criticism but slow (or too lazy) to bother learning why she opened the school.  Years ago, in a private conversation with her friend and mentor, Nelson Mandela, she asked him what she could do for him.  He asked her to build him a school.  That was the genesis for the Leadership Academy.  I doubt any of Oprah’s critics have the moral standing to question Nelson Mandela.

Finally, a lot of charitable giving is done anonymously so we may never know what some people choose to support and how much.

Remember when the tsunami hit Malayasia? Well, the amount of money form the Saudis and their crew was paltry.  You know if you are a billionaire, 10 mil to help fellow muslims is a drop in the bucket. It seems that when some catastrophe hits, individual Americans and their Euro counterparts are the first to give, whereas the The oil rich Arabs countries have their hands stuck in their pockets.

[Nordic Superman]

Remember when the tsunami hit Malayasia? Well, the amount of money form the Saudis and their crew was paltry.  You know if you are a billionaire, 10 mil to help fellow muslims is a drop in the bucket. It seems that when some catastrophe hits, individual Americans and their Euro counterparts are the first to give, whereas the The oil rich Arabs countries have their hands stuck in their pockets.

Absolutely correct. Saudi Arabia ammended their donation figure twice due to criticism.

No body is bringing facts to this debate.

[Faust]

Remember when the tsunami hit Malayasia? Well, the amount of money form the Saudis and their crew was paltry.  You know if you are a billionaire, 10 mil to help fellow muslims is a drop in the bucket. It seems that when some catastrophe hits, individual Americans and their Euro counterparts are the first to give, whereas the The oil rich Arabs countries have their hands stuck in their pockets.

I believe in Islam it's actually mandatory to give to the poor.
Although the Saudis prefer to spend their money to "charities" that devote themself to spreading their version of Islam (quite a fascist one) in Africa, Europe and Islamic countries.

[Nordic Superman]

I believe in Islam it's actually mandatory to give to the poor.
Although the Saudis prefer to spend their money to "charities" that devote themself to spreading their version of Islam (quite a fascist one) in Africa, Europe and Islamic countries.

Saudi Islam is pure islam. It is the same islam that is in Europe etc.

They are just truer to the texts of the koran.

Import a koran from SA and a local one. There's no difference.

In islam it is mandatory to give to the poor (muslims).

[affy]

Saudi Islam is pure islam. It is the same islam that is in Europe etc.

They are just truer to the texts of the koran.

Import a koran from SA and a local one. There's no difference.

In islam it is mandatory to give to the poor (muslims).

The Koran is the same everywhere..but its interpretation has always been debated.

Saudis practice wahabism which they claim is the most fundamental way of practicing Islam...and ironically enough it calls for them to live within their means, and just have enough to survive

rofl...that didn't exactly work for them

[Nordic Superman]

The Koran is the same everywhere..but its interpretation has always been debated.

Saudis practice wahabism which they claim is the most fundamental way of practicing Islam...and ironically enough it calls for them to live within their means, and just have enough to survive

rofl...that didn't exactly work for them

Only so many portions of the koran can have any sufficient interpretation.

For example; death to apostates of islam, women needing 4 muslim witnesses to rape etc are universal. The koran also dictates that you must believe in EVER portion of its verses, otherwise you are less than muslim.

If ANY country knows what islam is, it is Saudi Arabia.

[Camel Jockey]

The four witnesses for rape thing is practiced in the mideast, pakiland and north africa mostly, and by the people the saudis have influenced.

I have never seen it happen in my culture.. I mean my country has women riding motorcycles these days and wearing jeans. That doesn't happen in saudia arabia.

But nice going by turning this thread into a debate about islam.. hahaha, first it's the pompous black parker that whines about a rich saudi bying a big plane by means of his wealth, which were aquired using western capitalism. Complain about Jay-Z and 50 cent, dumbass. Then you have Nodick ceasing the chance and starting his usual nonsense.

The bottom line is that its his money and he can do whatever. What does this have to do with the Koran?  If you want to point out him being a hypocrite, then start another thread. But don't forget that he got all that money by using free market capitalism, which doesn't say shit about giving to the poor.

[Nordic Superman]

The four witnesses for rape thing is practiced in the mideast, pakiland and north africa mostly, and by the people the saudis have influenced.

I have never seen it happen in my culture.. I mean my country has women riding motorcycles these days and wearing jeans. That doesn't happen in saudia arabia.

But nice going by turning this thread into a debate about islam.. hahaha, first it's the pompous black parker that whines about a rich saudi bying a big plane by means of his wealth, which were aquired using western capitalism. Complain about Jay-Z and 50 cent, dumbass. Then you have Nodick ceasing the chance and starting his usual nonsense.

The bottom line is that its his money and he can do whatever. What does this have to do with the Koran?  If you want to point out him being a hypocrite, then start another thread. But don't forget that he got all that money by using free market capitalism, which doesn't say shit about giving to the poor.

I could care less, but yes I did hijack the thread somewhat. Thanks for pointing that out.

I just don't understand why he didn't buy a Blackbird? Way cooler than this shit.

[Camel Jockey]

I could care less, but yes I did hijack the thread somewhat. Thanks for pointing that out.

I just don't understand why he didn't buy a Blackbird? Way cooler than this shit.

There's only like 30 blackbirds.. And you'd need a top rate pilot..

AND you'd need the the US airforce to sell you one.

[Parker]

The four witnesses for rape thing is practiced in the mideast, pakiland and north africa mostly, and by the people the saudis have influenced.

I have never seen it happen in my culture.. I mean my country has women riding motorcycles these days and wearing jeans. That doesn't happen in saudia arabia.

But nice going by turning this thread into a debate about islam.. hahaha, first it's the pompous black parker that whines about a rich saudi bying a big plane by means of his wealth, which were aquired using western capitalism. Complain about Jay-Z and 50 cent, dumbass. Then you have Nodick ceasing the chance and starting his usual nonsense.

The bottom line is that its his money and he can do whatever. What does this have to do with the Koran?  If you want to point out him being a hypocrite, then start another thread. But don't forget that he got all that money by using free market capitalism, which doesn't say shit about giving to the poor.

Dude, as you said, it is his money, and he can do what he wants, I agree. But there was big row back when the tsumami hit Malayasia, the nation with the largest percentage of Muslims, and the Saudis gave very, very little, compared to the outpouring from simple Americans, who donated not just money, but time, rescue dogs and equipment. People who didn't have anything to gain.

Trust me, the is the height of being pompous. Yes, Jay and 50 have money, and they also give back. But they don't money to spend 400 mil on a plane, now do they...? Bill Gates does, and look how much he gives back...

What I was saying is that the Saudis and their folk are less giving worldwide than their Capitalist cousins. No dig on Muslims, because there are folk like this in every religion. You remember the story  "A Christmas Carol"?  Scrooge was the epitome of a miserly, money grubber, who wouldn't help nor care for charity, when people needed it the most.   
 
Hell, I wish I was born in the House of Sa-ud, but being that there only about 1,400 in royal family...it was never to be.

[Camel Jockey]

Of course they give less because in general they're way more backwards and hypocrites.

But this purchase doesn't really concern that and that's my main point.