VIP Squadron to Get New Indian Air Force One

NEW DELHI - June 29, 2015 - PRLog -- According to an item published in the latest issue of Indian Military Review the President and the Prime Minister will soon get a plush, highly-secure office high in the sky. Fitted with advanced self-protection suites to jam and beat hostile incoming missiles and encrypted satellite communication facilities, the new 'Desi Air Force One' is set to be cleared soon.

Giving details, the new issue of Indian Military Review published from New Delhi said that the Defence Acquisitions Council, chaired by defence minister Manohar Parrikar, has recently cleared a proposal to convert two Boeing 777-300 ERs for travel on extra long-haul overseas flights for very very important persons (VVIP).

The two 777-300 (ER) aircraft will be "bought" from Air India (AI), which has a dozen such relatively new wide-bodied planes, and then specially configured for VVIP travel and retrofitted with the sophisticated self-protection suites by Boeing.

They will replace the ageing Boeing 747 'Jumbo Jets' used for VVIP duties under 'Air India One' call sign after pulling them out from commercial duties as and when required. "These old aircraft do not have anti-missile defence systems, which the special protection group (SPG) holds as necessary. A panel of secretaries of top ministries like defence, finance, aviation, external affairs, home along with brass of the SPG had met to address two key issues — whether the new plane should be two-engine or four-engine and whether Air India or Indian Air Force should be operating and maintaining the chariot of the sky. "There is a huge price difference in the price of twin-engine and four-engine jets.

The issue gained urgency after Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was shot down over Ukraine in 2014, just around the time Modi's 747-400 aircraft was using a nearby air corridor to return to New Delhi from Frankfurt. In April, India was also forced to dispatch a stand-by aircraft to Berlin after the 747-400 being used by PM Modi developed engine problems during his three-nation tour.

The two modified 777-300 (ER) aircraft will be based with the Air HQ Communication Squadron at Palam, which is tasked with ferrying the President, prime minister and other VVIPs in and around the country. Incidentally, the IAF Communication Squadron has three Boeing Business Jets, with similar defence systems, which were inducted for VVIP travel in 2009 under a Rs 937 crore deal. But these 'mini Air Force Ones' have a limited range of 3,000 nautical miles. The CAG had slammed the deal since the aircraft cannot fly VVIPs non-stop to international locations like London due to their limited range.

The 777-300s will have robust defence systems including 'radar warning receivers', which basically sound an alert if a hostile radar 'paints' the aircraft before letting loose missiles, and 'missile-approach warning systems'. Advanced electronic counter-measures on board the aircraft will be able to jam enemy radars, along with defence systems geared to shoot metal chaff or flares to throw off-track radar-guided or heat-seeking missiles.

The four-engine options from Boeing were the four-engine B-747 and two-engine B-777 and B-787. Incidentally, Air India already has both the long range (LR) and extended range (ER) versions of the Boeing 777, apart from the constantly snag-ridden Dreamliners (787).

The B-777s had been inducted into AI's fleet after 2007, and the Dreamliners are brand new with many yet to be delivered to the airline. The B 777-300 ER and B-787 compare favourably to the fuel-guzzling B-777 200 LR. Air India is, in fact, getting rid of the LRs as keeping them on ground is less loss-making than flying them due to its abysmally poor fuel efficiency.

The other options were from Airbus — four-engine A-340 and two-engine A-330, apart from the under development A-350.

The current list price of Boeing's long range jets goes from Rs 2,282 crore for a brand new B-747-8 to Rs 1,352 crore for a B 787-8. Airbus long range jets' current list price goes from Rs 2,112 crore for A-350-1000 to Rs 1,375 crore for A-330-200.

'VIP touch  to Mi-17 Helicopters

With the Mi-8 helicopters on the last leg of their operational life and plans to induct the Italian AgustaWestland machines having run aground over corruption charges, the IAF is modifying the newly acquired Russian Mi-17 V5 choppers to meet the requirements of ferrying the nation's top leaders.

Five Mi-17 V5 helicopters are being modified at the Air Force's No.3 Base Repair Depot (3BRD), and the project would be completed in about six months time.

Modification of the choppers includes refurbishment, air conditioning and soundproofing of the cabin, installing passenger seats as in airliners, making provisions for a small toilet and adding other necessary security and communications paraphernalia.

While seats have been sourced from Air India, some of the equipment being installed has been imported. Each item, whether technical equipment or furnishing articles, is being certified to meet the required aviation standards for stress, fire resistance, impact survivability and other security concerns.

The modified choppers would be inducted into the Air Headquarters Communications Squadron based at Palam, which operates a mix of helicopters and fixed-wing executive jets for ferrying VVIPs. The squadron's Mi-8s, which wear a blue livery distinct from the low-visibility grey drab worn by other IAF aircraft, have been in service for almost three decades and are at the end of their technical life, after having undergone repeated life extension certifications. The IAF had started de-commissioning the earlier versions of Mi-8 helicopters in the mid-2000s.

The Air Force had ordered a total of 139 Mi-17 V5 helicopters to replace the Mi-8 and the older versions of the Mi-17. These were assembled and flight tested by 3 BRD, where technical facilities are also being set up for their maintenance and overhaul.

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