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Someone Just Bought 80 Plane Seats For His 80 Falcons, And The Internet Is Freaking Out
A picture shared with the following caption is going viral: “My captain friend sent me this photo… Saudi prince bought ticket for his 80 hawks.” Ahmet Yasar who posted the picture told Bored Panda that it was an A330 plane and headed to Jeddah, a city in Saudi Arabia. However, the man couldn’t reveal which airline the picture was taken on.
It turns out, the birds were actually falcons, and apparently it is not uncommon to see wealthy people from the Arab countries transporting their birds on a plane. Hunting with falcons or using them for competitive sports have long-lived traditions in the region and falcons are considered auspicious birds – for instance, Abu Dhabi even has its own hospital dedicated to falcons.
Various airlines such as Etihad, Qatar and others allow falcons to board the plane for the additional cost of up to $630 per bird depending on the destination (Qatar Airlines pricing). Lufthansa even offers a custom-designed bird tray for that purpose. Oh, and falcons even have their own passports. It is believed that between 2002 and 2013, the UAE government issued more than 28,000 falcon passports, costing around $130 each. That’s not that big of a sum, knowing that the best of the falcons can cost up to $250,000.
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“My captain friend sent me this photo… Saudi prince bought ticket for his 80 hawks”
Image credits: lensoo
Watch a similar video from 2014:
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What do you think ?
Kjorn 8 years ago
people with shitload of money don't know what to do with it it's f*****g stupid. seat for each of the birds? damn... i can't afford a single trip by plane myself
Nomadus Aureus 8 years ago
Some of those falcons are worth as much as my yearly uni tuition fee. These are highly trained sports and hunting birds. Keeping them is a fortune in itself.
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Sally Vogel 8 years ago
I'll bet they don't think so. Not much of a life for them, they are meant to be free.
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Ofir Arad 8 years ago
Why don't these Saudis try to help their brothers in Syria, instead of chuck billions on nonesense like this? I suppose they also wipe their asses with money notes instead of toilet paper.
Ruth Miriam 8 years ago
Agreed. They spend so much money on pointless possessions yet could not care less about the suffering that surrounds them.
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Isis Taylor 8 years ago
Thats a LOT of money. About $60,800 for the tickets and passports of just the falcons.
James Nguyen 8 years ago
Saudi Arabia takes in zero refugees. Care more about flaunting their wealth. It's really obscene. What a selfish and sick society they are.
Casandra Nițescu 8 years ago
That they have passports isn't crazy though. Any animal that you want to take with you to another country needs a passport. I'm not exactly sure what these passports say but I think they contain information about which vaccines they've taken and so on. Our family dog has a passport too, it's no big deal.
Kjorn 8 years ago
people with shitload of money don't know what to do with it it's f*****g stupid. seat for each of the birds? damn... i can't afford a single trip by plane myself
Nomadus Aureus 8 years ago
Some of those falcons are worth as much as my yearly uni tuition fee. These are highly trained sports and hunting birds. Keeping them is a fortune in itself.
Load More Replies... Sally Vogel 8 years ago
I'll bet they don't think so. Not much of a life for them, they are meant to be free.
Load More Replies... Ofir Arad 8 years ago
Why don't these Saudis try to help their brothers in Syria, instead of chuck billions on nonesense like this? I suppose they also wipe their asses with money notes instead of toilet paper.
Ruth Miriam 8 years ago
Agreed. They spend so much money on pointless possessions yet could not care less about the suffering that surrounds them.
Load More Replies... Isis Taylor 8 years ago
Thats a LOT of money. About $60,800 for the tickets and passports of just the falcons.
James Nguyen 8 years ago
Saudi Arabia takes in zero refugees. Care more about flaunting their wealth. It's really obscene. What a selfish and sick society they are.
Casandra Nițescu 8 years ago
That they have passports isn't crazy though. Any animal that you want to take with you to another country needs a passport. I'm not exactly sure what these passports say but I think they contain information about which vaccines they've taken and so on. Our family dog has a passport too, it's no big deal.
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