Many people have never taken a plane ride in their lives, let alone embarked on some of the most expensive private jets in the world. Flying machines equipped with amenities most people can only dream of.
To skip the lines, fly on your own schedule, and enjoy all the amenities of home as you travel seems to most of us the stuff of fantasy.
Few things say power and privilege like the opulence of a customized private jet.
There are few more potent symbols of personal freedom. Many of the wealthiest people in the world enjoy the convenience, comfort, and privacy that comes with owning their own personal aircraft.
There are a few ultra-wealthy folks, though, who take the jet-setting lifestyle to another level entirely. From Sultans to Saudi Princes to American Presidents, we countdown the 15 most expensive private jets in the world.
Thumbnail: Imagine being able to fly around the world on aircraft that looks more like a flying cruise ship? An open-aired deck with a swimming pool and bars for your entertainment and the best view from anywhere, except if you live on the moon.
Could this be real, or is it just some fantasy? By the looks of this thumbnail, it looks believable, so your guess is as good as mine 15.–CESSNA CITATION LATITUDE Number 15 on our list is the Cessna Citation Latitude.
The $14.9 million Citation Latitude features seating for eight, a large fuselage, and a range of 2,300 nautical miles. The Latitude’s flexible, flat-floor cabin is 27 feet, six inches long; 72 inches tall; and 77 inches wide. For a Cessna, that’s large.
And the company’s designers used a clever combination of lighting and seat and window positioning to create an illusion of even greater interior space.
There’s more than high-tech lighting for your “inner nerd” to love on the Latitude.
The G5000 in the Latitude’s cockpit features three 14-inch LCD primary and multifunction displays and four touch-screen control panels.
It includes synthetic-vision technology, electronic charts, the safe-taxi system, a dual flight-management system, precision GPS landing technology, solid-state weather radar with turbulence detection and vertical scan capability, integrated terrain awareness and warning system, and data link. Satellite weather is optional.
The fiber-optic Clarity cabin management system allows complete wireless control of cabin functions.
It will be fully compatible with personal devices such as iPhones and Droids and will gain the ability to add features, such as VoIP.
It also has plenty of reserve power: Each passenger can watch a different movie but that taxes only 7 percent of the system.
The Latitude’s standard seating arrangement accommodates passengers with a forward, two-seat, side-facing couch, a club-four grouping of single seats, and two more single-seat aft of that.
The six pedestal single seats track forward and aft seven inches and laterally four inches on the seat base, with the 180-degree swiveling capability and infinite recline positions.
A bigger cabin combined with good operating economics should make the Latitude a popular choice for those seeking a modern midsize business jet. 14 – Gulfstream G500 Number 14 on our list is the Gulfstream G500.
Next up we have this very impressive Gulfstream G500. Now, although $44 million is a lot of money, it’s not compared to some of Gulfstream’s other offerings that are featured later on.
The G500 is fitted with beautiful bespoke cabins, which include customized tailored seats to match customer requirements.
Also, if you need to browse the web or take conference calls onboard, then the jet comes fully equipped with super-fast internet, roughly 30 times faster than any of its competitors.
The recently certified G500 represents a leap forward in flight deck and flight control interface design.
While the cabin features the latest in Gulfstream interior design and manufacturing, what sets the G500 apart from other Gulf streams, even the G650, is the Symmetry flight deck.
There is much more to it than just replacing the G650’s yoke controls and traditional avionics with active-control side sticks and touchscreens, and engineers spent an enormous amount of time on human factors, design, and testing.
On the outside of the airframe, access panels are placed at locations that allow teams to service systems in parallel, a typical Gulfstream philosophy.
The fuel panel can be controlled from the flight deck touchscreens.
The G500 wing measures 86 feet, 4 inches, and is swept 37 degrees, and as is normal for Gulfstreams, the entire 30,250 pounds of fuel is carried in the wings.
The baggage compartment volume is 175 cu ft, and it is accessible in-flight up to 40,000 feet, although that is an FAA limitation and not an EASA limitation.
Gulfstream is working with the FAA on eliminating that restriction.
