Air CIA Takes You There

Competition in the low cost flight industry is really hotting up since the CIA entered the business. It seems that Palma de Mallorca in Spain has now become one of their major hubs – from here they are offering free no-frills flights direct to a variety of attractive destinations, including Guantanamo, Baghdad and Bagram in Afghanistan. For those with family connections, there are optional stopovers in Amman, Tripoli, Cairo or Damascus. Not only are the flights free, but in some cases they might travel with only a single passenger, helpfully provided with a complementary travel kit consisting of orange jumpsuit, blindfold and handcuffs. In many cases, the passenger(s) can be picked up from relatively remote locations – and in cases where it seems they have been delivered to the wrong destination, Air CIA guarantees that they will be returned to a destination of at least equal remoteness (Khalid al-Masri). Accommodation on arrival is almost certainly included in the package, although as you would expect with such a low cost service it can be fairly basic. Although they are apparently still awaiting official approval from the Spanish government for these flights, it appears that this has not presented any obstacle for running the service since it began in 2001.