It’s not every day you go shopping for a VIP jumbo jet, but one unique offering is attracting attention online.
A Boeing 747-400 which has flown 14 Japanese prime ministers and the country’s emperor around the world is up for sale, according to a listing on aviation trade publication Controller.
Built in 1991, the aircraft was registered by the Japanese Air Self Defense Forces and has been modified to include a bedroom, shower, office and lounge area.
The Japanese Air Force One still has a fairly high number of seats, at 85; in comparison, the US Air Force One has 70.
As well as the luxurious living areas, pictures show banks of first- and coach-class seating. The plane also has a smaller “secretary cabin”, provided to chamberlains when flying the Imperial Family and secretaries when transporting the prime minister.
For the princely sum of $28 million potential buyers could get their hands on the modified 747, which still looks like a “factory new” craft, according to the seller.
The plane has seen little use for its age, with just 16,332 hours flight time.
“One of the lowest time Boeing 747-400’s in the world,” reads the listing. “Aircraft has been maintained to the highest possible standard.”
The 747-400 is one of two that was used for official VIP transport. Both have been retired to be replaced by a pair of Boeing 777-300ER jets, according to Aviation International News.
While Japan’s leader can still count on a VIP plane, Mexico’s President Andrés Manuel López Obrador vowed to sell his version of Air Force One when he came to power in December.
“I will not get on the presidential plane. I would be embarrassed. My face would be filled with shame if I board such a luxurious plane in a country with so much poverty,” López Obrador said in a video posted to Twitter in September.
At the time of writing the plane has not been sold, but the eventual proceeds will be used to help fund Mexican government efforts to reduce migration from Central America to the US, according to Reuters.
