View of Pinal Airpark, Arizona.

View of Pinal Airpark, Arizona.
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$350m jumbo jet to be scrapped after just 30 hours flying time

No buyer could be found for the Boeing 747 once owned by Saudi Crown Prince.

A customised jumbo jet that cost $350million to buy is set to be scrapped after failing to find a buyer. The Boeing 747-8 was intended for use by Sultan bin Abdulaziz, the former Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia who died on October 22, 2011, aged 77.

After purchase, the plane was flown from the US to Basel in Switzerland a decade ago to undergo internal refurbishment to meet the Crown Prince’s requirements, only for his death to end the planned upgrade.

It was returned to the US where it has sat for ten years awaiting a buyer. However, no buyer has materialised in that time despite the asking price being dropped by almost 75 per cent to $95million.

In its lifetime it has flown just 30 hours, with the four engines used to power an aircraft known as the ‘Queen of the Skies’ still worth around $80million dollars due to the accuracy of their ‘hardly used’ sales pitch.

It is currently based at Pinal Airark – the location in Arizona where many planes go to die – ahead of its disassembly at a future date, with many of its pristine components likely to be sold for use on other aircraft.

 

Falstaff Editorial Team
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