A Middle Eastern airline installs ultra-luxury on French super-jumbo jets

© Gordon Tipene | Dreamstime.com

Emirates, the official airline of Dubai, scarcely turns up on the radar for most American travelers, if only because they have only two direct flights to the United States. Many Americans never heard of them until last week, when the man suspected of trying to set off a homemade bomb in New York’s Times Square was taken off an Emirates flight and arrested.

In fact, Emirates is a high flyer in the airline world. They fly only jumbo jets, including the humongous Airbus A380 (shown above), the largest commercial airliner in the world. And they’ve literally taken airline comfort to the next level — specifically, the upper level of the A380′s double decks.

All that space on the A380 apparently gave somebody at Emirates an idea: Why not install suites on their airplanes?

So they did.

Check out these pics from this Australian newspaper website, The Brisbane Times…and try not to drool on your keyboard. (If the Brisbane newspaper link gives you problems, try this one from Emirates itself.)

Let’s see now:

* Not one window all to yourself…but three?
* Your first-class seat, which naturally turns into a full-length bed, is enclosed with…walnut-paneled doors?
* Your own 17-inch wireless-controlled video monitor with…1,100 channels of viewing and listening to choose from?
* A six-course dinner with fine wines…when you call for it?
* Your own mini-bar?

And that’s just your seat. The restrooms come with…showers? And if you feel like leaving your suite to mingle, there are two lounge bars.

Oops, almost forgot…the on-board spa.

At this rate, I might not want — or be able to — get off this airplane.

Just for grins, I went on Emirates’ site and priced one of their First Class flights, from London Heathrow airport to Sydney, Australia.
Cost: $15,516. And change.

The grinning stopped immediately.

Remember that old saying, “If you have to ask, you can’t afford it?” At those rates, I’d have to ask about eight or nine times…probably while on my hands and knees.

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