Boeing 777 ‘Air India One’: All you need to know

Team Udayavani, Oct 15, 2020, 1:07 PM IST

Recently, The first of two custom-made Boeing 777 aircraft, which will be used to fly the President, the Vice President, and the Prime Minister, arrived in Delhi. The modified Boeing 777-300ER will now replace the 747-400 for VVIP duties.

The plane features twin GE90-115 engines, a variant of the engine made for the -300ER

The B777 planes will have state-of-the-art missile defence systems called Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasures (LAIRCM) and Self-Protection Suites (SPS).

LAIRCM consists of missile warning sensors, laser transmitter assembly, control interface unit and processors to detect, track, jam and counter incoming infrared missiles

The aircraft includes a VVIP suit, two conference rooms, a press briefing room, a patient transfer unit, secure video telephony and sound proofing.

It is also equipped with an advanced communications system that allows mid-air audio and video connection with top-tier security

The security measures are on par with Air Force One and the plane will be capable of flying between India and the US without having to stop for refuelling.

The total cost of purchase and retrofitting the two planes is around Rs. 8,400 crore ($1.1 billion) The missile defense system costs around $190 million.