By Capt. Menaka Fernando
Gyms, beauty parlours, private double beds and an in-flight casino are some of the highlights that will be featured on the giant Airbus A380 aircraft, according to industry sources. Airbus has been approached by potential Asian buyers who are looking to turn the A380 – the world’s biggest passenger aircraft – into a flying casino, enabling high-rolling gamblers to cash in their chips with the great casino in the sky.

It’s bigger than a hot air balloon and it’s bigger than any other airplane that was ever built. The Airbus A380 measures 80 metres from wingtip to wingtip, 73 metres from the front nose to the tail-plane, 24 metres in height and 274,877 kilogrammes in weight. It has 20 landing wheels!

While it is so massive that it is hard to believe that it can actually fly, another advantage is that it can fly over 10,000 miles without refuelling. The A380 Airbus took 10 years to develop and developing it alone cost over US$ 13 billion.

According to François Chazelle, Head of Airbus Executive and Private Aviation Division, discussions are underway, and not just with casino operators.

“Should the talks lead to an order soon, a fully-fitted casino A380 could be delivered between 2012 and 2017,” he said. Gambling is a growing business in Far East Asia, especially in regions such as Macao and Singapore. Macao has overtaken Las Vegas as the world’s biggest gaming centre, while Singapore is planning to open its first casino soon.

Although Airbus would not disclose the identities of potential customers, the idea of a flying casino has been mentioned time and again. Casinos are banned in many Asian countries such as Thailand, Japan and mainland China, but operators have long offered gambling-boat cruises out of cities such as Hong Kong into international waters by exploiting the legal loopholes.

According to Chazelle, the A380 was the first aircraft large enough for a full-fledged casino operation. This double deck aircraft which has a passenger capacity of more than 800 passengers made its maiden voyage out of Singapore in October last year.

The boss of Virgin Atlantic, Richard Branson said a gym and gambling area offering blackjack and roulette would be available to economy and business class passengers in his aircraft. Virgin Atlantic, which already offers seats which convert into double beds on some of its existing aircraft, plans to install 35 private double beds on each A380.

According to industry sceptics, this just might be the most outlandish Airbus A380 story yet. Although Airbus Industry had mentioned onboard gaming as a possibility when the plane first came out, airlines weren’t really interested because gaming areas would take up valuable space meant for passengers.

Another player indulging in excess is Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal of Saudi Arabia, the 13th richest person in the world, who has bought and converted an A380 into a “flying palace,” solely for his private comfort.

The 6,000-square foot plane will include private bedrooms, a movie theatre and a gym with a Jacuzzi. As a member of the Saudi Royal family, he benefits from the country’s vast oil wealth. An industry official commented that once the seats are taken out, the plane can be transformed into a flying mansion without any difficulty.

A general depiction of Talal’s VIP A380 includes spacious bedrooms on the plane’s upper deck, separated by a reception area and a bar next to the central stairway. It also includes a master bedroom, an office, private dinning room, a gym featuring a steam bath and exercise machines.

The lower decks feature a lounge-type quarters equipped with a conference area and dining room. It is planned to transform the third level, normally used for cargo, into another passenger space or cinema.

Although this type of custom design does not come cheap, purchases of private airliners havemushroomed in recent years. Airbus expects at least six other A380 VIP jets to be sold to clients in the Middle East and Central and South Asia. The number of billionaires have certainly skyrocketed in recent years!

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