Singapore Airlines, by many counts the best airline in the world, just unveiled its ultra-luxurious Airbus A380 jetliner.
Most of the seats on the maiden flight of the double-decker plane were auctioned for charity on eBay, and some people really paid a lot of money for 'em. Like Singaporean businessman William Leong, who bought a seat for his 91-year-old father to fulfill a promise:
"When we were young, we went through hardship and my father had to work extra hard to support us and send us to school," said Singaporean businessman William Leong, who had promised his father, Leong Lou Teck, 91, that he would be on the A380's first flight.
"He took care of us then, and now it's our turn to take care of him," Leong said in an interview before the seven-hour flight that will carry 12 first-class passengers in enclosed suites which the airline calls "A Class Beyond First."
Promising total privacy, each suite — created by French luxury yacht designer Jean-Jacques Coste — is fitted with a leather upholstered seat, a bed, a table and a 23-inch TV screen, plus laptop connections and a range of office software.
Leong is particularly impressed by the suite's sliding doors — "When I snore, it won't disturb my neighbors."
Leong paid $60,000 for eight seats, including three suites for his father, elder brother and himself, as well as four in business class and economy for other relatives.
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The first-class fare for a ticket from Singapore to Sydney is $7,000 but you can take a look at some neat panorama photos of the planes at photographer Gilles Vidal's website: Link - Thanks mikolka!