First A380 ‘Royal Yacht’ May be Launched Soon

Plans to convert the first Airbus A380retired from airline service into a ‘royal yacht’ are well under way. “We are in discussions with three parties. One is at a very advanced stage,” says Philip Queffelec, chairman of Sparfell & Partners, the leading aircraft trading company in Switzerland brokering commercial aircraft, business jets and helicopters. His company is trying to find homes for four A380-800s that came off lease at Singapore Airlines since last November, the first in the industry to do so. Queffelec says the big jets are perfect for VVIP or head-of-state transportation. Though they have racked up numerous hours on long-haul flights, they have far fewer cycles, meaning much of their original equipment is only at about half-life. And the price is right: far less than a “green” Boeing 777 or Airbus A330. You could fly away a VVIP A380 for perhaps under $300 million, very aggressive  compared to a new “green” twin-engine widebody, he says.