Air India One (also referred
to as AI-1 or AIC001)
is the call sign of
any Air India aircraft
carrying the Prime Minister of India, President of India or the Vice President of India.
I wish I could say I have always wondered what it must
be like to fly on the PM's plane. The truth is, I never really gave it much
thought, except of course to think that it must be a glamorous affair.
I got this idea from a Newsweek cover story sometime during
the Bush presidency, when two reporters who flew the Air Force One to Russia got
such phenomenal access that I remember being terribly impressed. Mainstream
newsrooms tend to treat such trips, like most things in life, with measured
disinterest.
It is one of those things that will eventually happen to you.
When your friends find out you are going on a PM's trip, they will typically
flash half a knowing smile and say something like, "oh so you are going on
one of those? Have fun!"
When my mother told that we have been nominated to accompany
the PM for the one one of his official trips and I was totally excited. When
people hear you are "accompanying the PM" to some summit, they tend
to think that you will be sitting behind the PM at the summit hall where he
will periodically turn around to consult you before responding to Obama. In
reality, it's like flying coach. You know there are important people in first
class. You almost never see them. They board after you and leave before and
they will stay at a fancy hotel. As for the summit, you are not even allowed
inside the perimeter of the building. But it's not a bad thing overall. So much
effort goes into organizing a PM trip overseas, it would be shocking if it
weren't rewarding.
The aircraft for India's VVIP flights are operated by flag carrier Air India
for the President, vice president and the PM. The flight number is always AI 1
(for Air India One). It's a Boeing 747-400 aircraft, the largest production jet
before the Airbus 380 began service. Air India has five of these.
When a VVIP flight is scheduled, one of them is pulled out of
regular passenger service and fitted with a VVIP configuration that Boeing
sells separately. This means the VVIP gets a suite, with a bedroom, a lounge, a
six-seater office and satellite phones. At Air India, there is an unofficial
panel of about eight pilots who fly the VVIP flights.
The plane is flown by two pilots but VVIP flight must have
four pilots on board at all times. The flight is monitored from the Palam Air
Force Station. Other countries en route are intimated about the schedule of the
VVIP flight. When the aircraft is fitted with the VVIP configuration about a
week before the trip, the exacting men of the Special Protection Group take
over.
They practically take the aircraft apart and peer inside
every panel, duct and instrument. The 1988 air crash that killed Pakistan
President Gen. Zia-Ul-Haq is suspected to have been a result of sabotage, in
which chemicals were possibly used to incapacitate the pilots. So the SPG
conducts swab tests on every switch and lever in the cockpit.
They test the fuel before the aircraft is fuelled. They test
the water before it is loaded on the plane. And of course, there are weapons on
board. For the pilots flying the VVIP planes, it's a matter of prestige. Over
the years, the VVIPs get to know them well.
Some have special requests. It is said that Vice president
Hamid Ansari recently requested that the plane fly over the Pamir mountains on
the Afghan side of the Himalayas. The pilots had to take special permission
from the Afghans, but the wish was fulfilled. The vice president got a great
view of the "roof of the world" from the cockpit.
Sometimes passengers accompanying the VVIPs come to chat with
the pilots. There are two things that set the VVIP flight apart from average
joe flights. The first is that you can smoke at the back of the aircraft.
The other is that you get the kind of onboard service that
money can't buy. It's efficient, unhurried and charming. If you refuse dessert,
the stewardess, who will address you by name, will urge you to try a little.
Apart from the Boeing 747-400 owned by Air India and used on
international state visits, the IAF currently owns four 14 seater Embraer
135and three customized 46 seater Boeing Business Jets (BBJ) that
have a VIP cabin and are used for VIP movement. Of these the Boeing 747s are
used by either the Prime Minister, President or Vice President when on official
overseas visits.
Each Embraer 135 is equipped with
missile-deflecting systems, modern flight management system including global
positioning system, as well as category II instrument landing system. These
aircraft cost the IAF Rs. 1.40 billion each The Three BBJs, christened Rajdoot, Rajhansand Rajkamal cost
the IAF Rs.9.34 billion each ( Rs.7.34 billion for the actual aircraft plus
an additional Rs.2 billion for Self Protection Suites).Self-protection
suites include radar warning receivers, missile-approach warning and
counter-measure systems. The aircraft have the capability to shoot chaff and flares to
deviate radar-guided and heat-seeking missiles off their
track along with other security tools. The other security instruments are
undisclosed by the Indian Air Force.
The onboard electronics include about 238 miles of wiring
(twice the amount you'd find in a normal 747). Heavy shielding is tough enough
to protect the wiring and crucial electronics from the electromagnetic pulse
associated with a nuclear blast.
The President is designated VIP 1,
The Vice President VIP 2 and The Prime Minister VIP 3. The BBJ have a four
class configuration. For the President/Prime Minister, there is a separate
enclosure in the aircraft which includes an office and a bedroom. Everyone
aboard Air India One is required to wear a color-coded identity card. Members
of the official delegation (Joint Secretary level and above) are tagged in
purple and sit in First Class while accompanying officials (junior officers)
are given pink tags and sit in Business Class on the upper deck. Journalists and
others from the media sit in the Executive Class and sport yellow tags. Support
staffs join the security team in a small economy class section at the back of
the aircraft and are tagged in red. These aircraft are expected to be replaced
as they have become less cost-effective to operate. The Indian Air Force is
looking forward to replace the present Boeing 747-400 with the Boeing 777-300,
787-9 or the Airbus A380. Most probably three new Boeing 777-300ERs will be the
successors of the present B747s. All in all on Board Air India one is a journey of a life time.
|
