Aircraft

Airbus has identified the customer for the first VIP A380 aircraft as Saudi Arabian royal family member Prince Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud, adding that the jet will be powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines.

The manufacturer confirmed earlier this year that it had a customer lined up to take the VIP aircraft which it has designated the ‘Flying Palace’.

© Tom Enders

No completion centre has yet been selected to outfit the aircraft’s cabin. Airbus revealed the customer at the Dubai air show today. The aircraft will be delivered in 2010.

Al-Saud is the founder of diversified private investment firm Kingdom Holding Company which concentrates on activities in the banking, hotel, and real estate sectors. He already owns a private Boeing 747-400 aircraft.

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