India’s first VVIP plane landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport on Thursday. Worthy for the travel of India’s VVIPs, including the President, Vice-President and Prime Minister, the Boeing 777-300 ER is considered a class in itself.
The Boeing had undergone retrofitment in the United States for more than two years. It was scheduled for delivery in July but was delayed twice due to COVID-19 pandemic and technical reasons.
The aircraft that arrived in India is one of the two Boeing 777-300 ERs that joined Air India’s fleet in 2018 and were sent to Boeing’s headquarters in Texas for retrofitment. The second one is likely to land by October.
The Aircraft which is now under Air India will soon be part of the Indian Air Force. Air India will de-register these aircraft and hand over to the Indian Air Force. The planes will then get a K-series registration number given to military aircraft.
KNOW THE AIRCRAFT
- The aircraft has a VVIP suite for the President, Vice-President and Prime Minister
- Two conference rooms
- Press briefing room
- Equipped with missile warning sensors and countermeasures dispensing defence system
- Advanced Electronic Warfare Suites; this will not only protect aircraft from any kind of attack from the surface to air but also will be able to take countermeasures in case of an attack
- Flies over 17 hours continuously without landing in between for refuelling
- Advanced communication system; Video telephony and sound proofing –as such the President or Prime minister will be able to communicate with relevant ground staff through video or audio conferencing without the worry of being hacked or taped
- On-board medical staff, available 24×7,
- Operation theatre
- Patient transfer unit
- The plane comes with two GE90-115BL engines offering maximum thrust of 1,15,300 lbs.