The secret of specialty of heads of state (2)

Each country has a different policy for specialized procurement for its leaders. But this is not always convenient, but the case in the UK is an example.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair is working on a chartered plane when he goes public.(Photo: PA)

Air travel by the Royal Family and high-ranking officials was carried out by the Royal Air Force's No. 32 squadron (RAF). In addition, VIPs such as prime ministers and ministers often use leased aircraft or regular commercial flights to travel.

The government is planning to buy two special planes to transport royal and government VIPs. British media called them Blair Force One , referring to Prime Minister Tony Blair and Air Force One of the US president.

According to many sources, one of the specialized aircraft will be a long-range aircraft with about 70 seats. The second one is smaller, only 15 seats and is reserved for short flights.

The plan to buy Blair Force One from England continuously met with turbulence on the school itself. The proposal was made in 1998 and the Labor Party government firmly supported the purchase of a private plane for leaders. However, it became a criticism of many politicians because of financial problems.

In 2003, the buy-in plan was rekindled when the British Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee supported the use of private aircraft for prime ministers and defense ministers to ensure safety. In December 2004, the specialized equipment plan assigned to consultant Sir Peter Gershon meticulously studied.

Accordingly, the new aircraft must be equipped with a state-of-the-art communication system, capable of transporting both the team of entourage reporters and the most effective security system. To reduce costs, these specialized vehicles will not be able to buy off, but long-term lease. Expected to be the fastest until the end of 2007, the British engine has just begun to serve.

Estimates of the plan each year cost £ 12.3 million and more expensive than the current leadership of British leaders about £ 2.7 million. The amount paid for the use of these new specialists will be paid by the user, for example the prime minister's office, the Ministry of Defense or the royal family.

However, the plan to buy specialized vehicles continues to be fiercely beaten by political groups. The Conservative Party criticized it as a wasteful project and other politicians were concerned about spending taxpayers' money just to help officials go ' cool '.

In addition, the Liberal Democrats and environmental organizations such as Transport 200 and Friends of the Earth condemned the plan because of concerns about the environmental impacts of private jets.

So far he is still the only country in the G8 yet to have a professional. Meanwhile, the report on the plan to buy new planes for leaders also indicated that the current method of using leased aircraft in England has many security risks and inconveniences for VIPs such as Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Canadian specialties

Canadian Air Force Unit 437 operating an Airbus A310-300 has been converted into a VIP aircraft to serve the travel of prime ministers, high-ranking government officials and foreign guests. out.

In addition, the Canadian Air Force 412, also in charge of four Bombardier Challenger 604 aircraft specializing in transporting the country's VIPs.

This is a Canadian domestic product manufactured by Bombardier Aerospace. Bombardier is the world's fourth largest commercial aircraft manufacturer after Boeing, Airbus and Embraer.

Special squadron of French leaders

High-ranking French officials travel with sewing machines by the fleet of ETEC (ie transport, training and inspection squadrons), a unit under the Ministry of Defense. ETEC uses 6 Falcon 900s for public leaders within continental Europe and 2 Airbus A319s for mid-range and long-range flights.

Recently, France also bought 2 more Airbus A340-200 of Austrian Airlines to serve the business leaders. Besides, the French government also hired Air France aircraft to serve VIPs. When Concorde was still raging in the sky, this was the most familiar choice.

German specialties

High-ranking German officials used two Airbus 310-304 to travel. Previously these aircraft were owned by East German airline Interflug . They were then redesigned by Lufthansa Technik to become VIP transport aircraft in mid-range and long-range flights.

Two German Airbus 310-304 engines are named Konrad Adenauer (the first prime minister of West Germany after World War II) and Theodor Heuss (the first president of Germany).

In addition, a special unit of the German Air Force Flugbereitschaft also operates 6 Challenger 601 and 3 Eurocopter helicopters Cougar AS532 to serve travel needs of government officials, parliament and the military. .

The travel of Italian and Vatican leaders

The Italian Air Force uses two Airbus Corporate Jet aircraft to specialize in its leaders. Among them, one is designed for 30 seats for the prime minister or the president. The other one has 50 seats and is also used for travel needs of other government officials.

In addition, Italy also uses smaller sized aircraft such as Dassault Falcon 50 and Dassault Falcon 900 as special aircraft. Two American-made Agusta SH-3D Sea King helicopters are also reserved for presidents, government officials and pope use.

In the case of the pope, all the aircraft that the head of the Vatican is present are called " Shepherd One ". Traditionally, the pope visited a country on an Alitalia rental jet and when he returned he would ride on a charter plane of the recently visited national airline.

For example, when Pope Benedict XVI returned to the Vatican from the German city visit to Cologne on World Youth Day in 2005, he traveled on an Airbus A321 hired by German airline Lufthansa.

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The secret of specialties of heads of state (1)

Government