With His 12-Aircraft Entourage, Saudi Monarch Leaves One European Vacation Spot for Another

AP Breaking News ^ | 8/14/02 | Associated Press

[NormsRevenge]

GENEVA (AP) - Saudi King Fahd moved on to the next phase of his summer vacation Wednesday, taking his 12-aircraft entourage from Switzerland to Spain, where he has a home on the Mediterranean coast.

Jean-Luc Portier, a member of Geneva airport's management team, said the 81-year-old monarch left with a fleet of 12 large passenger jets in the afternoon. He has been vacationing since May in a residence he owns in Geneva and was headed to his home near the southern Spanish resort of Marbella.

For much of Fahd's stay, many of Geneva's five-star hotels were booked solid by members of his entourage. Fahd's fellow monarch, United Arab Emirates' leader Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahyan, was unable to find space at his usual city hotel and stayed at his villa in France near the Swiss border.

Last month, Fahd underwent surgery to remove a cataract from his right eye at a university hospital in Geneva. He earlier had an operation at the hospital to remove a blood clot from one of his eyes.

The stay in Switzerland was Fahd's first foreign vacation in three years. He designated Crown Prince Abdullah, his half brother and the kingdom's de-facto ruler, to run affairs in his absence.

The monarch suffered a stroke in 1995, leaving him with short-term memory loss and an inability to concentrate for long stretches. During meetings with foreign dignitaries, he is usually accompanied by close family members to avoid any potential embarrassment.

Suffering arthritis, diabetes and a bad knee, the monarch moves in a wheelchair and uses a cane for short walks.

[NormsRevenge]

:-|

[DWSUWF]

He's got more dollars than allah has pimples on his ass but he's too old and boogered up to truly enjoy spending them.

If I'd only known I could have hired a violin player to play sad songs softly in the background...

Maybe the Jewish one from Fiddler on the Roof?

[NormsRevenge]

I remember seeing his entourage in limos racing thru the streets of Jeddah in '85. It was a big long 'un!

They drive fast so no one can get a good shot at 'em, yaknow.

[Guillermo]

No wonder why these Arab despots have to keep the "Palestinian" issue alive...if their subject focused completely on their lifestyle of corruption, they would be overthrown.

[YOMO]

Geeesh, Going through Air Port Scurity must be a real problem. Can you imagine being frisked through your skirts?
OOPS, wrong air ports.

[evolved_rage]

$Saudi Arabia's budget deficit for 2002 could reach five billion dollars

So by these standards, Clinton thought of himself as a arab king...

[robjna]

My wife was in nassau bahamas when a prince from saudi arabia arrived at the Atlantis. He brought along his own fabric walls to be erected around his black jack table to have his privacy, no women dealers allowed to deal to him , the dealer was not allowed to speak to him but to his assistant who would speak to the prince, he would not touch the money, only his assistant. My wife was playing on another table where one of the princes flunkies was playing and he would not acknowledge women, would recieve calls on his cell and make the whole table wait while he talked. Complete and utter arogance from these saudi dumb##$%##
They are not our friends , they arent even the friends of their own people.

[NormsRevenge]

It makes ya wonder how they reproduce with that attitude towards women.

[Dakmar]

Geez, even Led Zeppelin only need one plane, and I'll bet the king doesn't even have a double bass drum kit.

Yes, obviously, terrorism is a reaction to poverty.

[1Old Pro]

No wonder why these Arab despots have to keep the "Palestinian" issue alive...if their subject focused completely on their lifestyle of corruption, they would be overthrown.

And it's also why they fund OBL and Al Quaida with the understanding that they do their terrorism anywhere but in Saudia Arabia.

[AngryJawa]

"Flight leader to flight...you are cleared weapons hot...FOX ONE!"

Ah, I can dream, can't I?

[baguette]

Zeppelin or Zappa? Sheik Yerbutti, (Zappa) flew commercial or tour bussed it around.

[NormsRevenge]

I hear ya .. Im wondering if there are Saudi pilots flying all the planes OR ?? Do they use foreign pilots?

[Dakmar]

Zeppelin, they had their own 747.

[AngryJawa]

Good point. Sorry for the itchy trigger finger.

[mikeIII]

Every one of these Islamic despots must have a "cause" to whip up public emotion, divert attention and stay in power, be it Palestine, the Jews, the Great Satan, Kashmir or whatever.

What we have yet to learn is that we can't expect genuine support from any of them, because that is equivalent to them committing suicide.