Saudi businessman Tarek bin Laden, half-brother of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, has signed up for the $80 million Aerion supersonic business jet

"Initial demand for the Aerion jet will come from Europe and the Middle East," said Niall Olver, chief executive of ExecuJet, which will handle marketing of the plane outside the United States.

ExecuJet is looking for 40 customers with deposits of $250,000 each.

"Market demand has driven our decision to begin accepting deposits," said Brian Barents, Aerion's vice chairman.

The Reno, Nevada-based company formed in 2002 and unveiled the design for its needle-nosed jet in 2004.