Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s New Aircraft with Missile Defence Feature to Be Flown by IAF Pilots

Two special customized B-777 planes with state of art missile defence system will be operated by the Indian Airforce Pilots to fly Prime Minister, the President and the Vice President and other top dignitaries from July next year. But the new wide-body planes will be maintained by Air India Engineering Services Limited (AIESL), which is a subsidiary of Air India.

Presently, the Prime Minister, the President and the Vice President fly on Air India’s B747 planes, which are also known as ‘Air India One’ ad Air India pilots fly these aircrafts for the dignitaries and the AIESL maintains them. When the B-747 aircraft are not used for flying the dignitaries, they are used by the national carrier for commercial operations.

The two new B-777 planes which are to be used by the dignitaries will come to India from the US facility of Boeing by mid-July next year. They also are going to have the call sign ‘Air India One’.

A senior official of the national career, Air India said, “only IAF pilots will be flying the two new aircraft for the PM, the President and the Vice President. Some other pilots of IAF will come for training soon”. He also informed that 4-6 pilots of the IAF have already been trained by Air India to fly the B-777 planes.

The B-777 aircrafts will have inbuilt state-of-the-art missile defence systems called Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasures (LAIRCM) and Self-Protection Suites (SPS). In February this year, the US has agreed to sell the two defence systems to India at a cost of 190 million dollars.

The Central government is also planning to initiate the process of divestment of its stake in the national career Air India, which has a debt of over Rs. 60,000 crores from November this year.

The missile defence systems in the aircraft will make Prime Minister Modi’s aircraft as secure as the Boeing 747-200B, which is used by US President Donald Trump. These two Boeing 777-300ER aircraft are designed at Boeing’s Dallas facility and will arrive in India by June 2020. 

With state-of-the-art missile defence systems also called Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasures (LAIRCM) and Self-Protection Suites (SPS), these two aircraft can jam enemy radar frequencies any time. At the same time, it can intercept advanced intermediate-range missile systems without the crew members intervening in the process.