A specifically modified Boeing 777 aircraft, which will be used to fly the prime minister, president and the vice president, landed in New ...
A specifically modified Boeing 777 aircraft, which will be used to fly the prime minister, president and the vice president, landed in New Delhi on Thursday after its retrofitment in the United States for more than two years, PTI reported.
The country’s first-ever VVIP plane was scheduled to be delivered by aircraft manufacturer Boeing to Air India in July but its delivery was delayed twice due to the coronavirus pandemic. Another custom-made aircraft for the travel of VVIPs is likely to be delivered by October-end. Officials said the total cost of purchase and retrofitting the two planes has been estimated to be around Rs 8,400 crore.
Before this, the government borrowed Boeing 747s from Air India ahead of a VVIP visit, The Hindu reported. However, those jet do not have secure communication equipment, sensors to detect and jam hostile threats such as surface-to-air missiles. Two jets were flown to Dallas Forth Worth in Texas, Boeing’s headquarters, for modifications.
The new Air India One, VVIP aircraft lands at @DelhiAirport pic.twitter.com/Rap8vwXUd2
— SUMIT CHATURVEDI (@joinsumit) October 1, 2020
Air India One, which is the call sign of the aircraft, landed at the Delhi airport from Texas around 3 pm on Thursday. Two Indian Air Force pilots have been trained by Air India to operate the modified aircrafts.
The Narendra...
