Today, a custom-made B777 aircraft by Boeing will arrive. Intended for President, Vice President, Prime Minister (Representative)
New Delhi:
A custom-built B777 aircraft, which will be used to fly the president, vice president and prime minister, will arrive today from the United States to India, government officials said.
Aircraft maker Boeing was scheduled to deliver the plane to Air India in August, but the delivery was delayed for technical reasons, officials said.
Senior officials from the national airline arrived in the United States during the first half of August to receive the Boeing plane, the officials said.
Air India One, which is the call sign for the plane, will land at Delhi Airport from Texas around 3pm this afternoon, they said.
Boeing is likely to receive another custom-made B777 aircraft for the VVIP trip at a later date, they noted.
The delivery of these two aircraft, which are intended solely for VVIP travel, was expected to take place in July. However, due to COVID-19, its delivery has been delayed for a few months.
During the VVIP trip, the two B777 jets will be operated by pilots from the Indian Air Force (IAF) and not Air India, an official said.
Currently, the President, Vice President and Prime Minister fly on Air India’s B747 aircraft, which have the Air India One call sign.
Air India pilots fly these B747 aircraft for dignitaries and Air India Engineering Services Limited (AIESL) maintains them.
When these B747 aircraft are not flying dignitaries, they are used by the Indian national airline for commercial operations.
The new planes will be used only for the dignitaries’ travels.
These two aircraft were part of Air India’s commercial fleet for a few months in 2018 before being shipped back to Boeing to be adapted for VVIP travel.
The B777 aircraft will feature next-generation missile defense systems called Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasures (LAIRCM) and Self-Protection Suites (SPS).
In February, the United States agreed to sell the two defense systems to India at a cost of $ 190 million.
The Center has already started the process of divesting its stake in Air India, which has a debt of more than Rs 60 billion. However, the process has been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is posted from a syndicated feed.)
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