kaal2009
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India has imported three VIP jets from the United States for use of its president, prime minister and others. In view of what I have said above about the United States' ability to disable electronic equipment by signals from satellites, this is terminally stupid. This is the kind of thing because of which Americans think of Indians and such as "ants" (see above) who they can crush when they choose. This is how a report in the Times of India celebrates this stupidity:-
India's Air Force One takes off with President on board
2 Apr 2009, 0000 hrs IST, TNN
NEW DELHI: Amid chanting of mantras, breaking of coconuts and a tilak ceremony, the desi Air Force One took to the skies on its inaugural VVIP flight on Wednesday, with President Pratibha Patil heading for Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.
IAF's three new Business Boeing Jets are, of course, not as large, plush or technically sophisticated as US President's Air Force One. Unlike Barack Obama's aircraft, which can fly halfway around the world without refuelling, the Indian version's range is limited to only 3,000 nautical miles.
Moreover, the desi Air Force One certainly does not have what Obama's "Flying Oval Office'' is also believed to carry: An escape pod or capsule to take the US President out of harm's way if the plane itself is hijacked.
Nevertheless, the three aircraft -- christened Rajdhoot, Rajhans and Rajkamal -- formally inducted on Wednesday will ensure the Indian President and Prime Minister will now travel in fully secure comfort like never before.
The aircraft, after all, are equipped with high-tech self-protection suites (SPS) to tackle incoming "hostile'' missiles or other airborne threats, as also encrypted satellite communication facilities and advanced navigation aids.
While the three VVIP jets in themselves came for Rs 734 crore, another Rs 202.93 crore was spent on equipping them with SPS ordered directly through the US government.
The President or PM will have an executive office and bedroom to themselves on board, apart from a secure communication chamber and facilities to host around 50 guests in the specially-configured aircraft.
"Trips will now be more business-like. We will get more time to study, concentrate and apply our minds as the flight will be more smooth,'' said Patil, just before taking off for the North-East.
IAF chief Air Chief Marshal Fali Homi Major, in turn, stepped in to dispel the controversy over whether US inspectors will be periodically allowed to physically inspect the aircraft under the end-use monitoring agreement (EUMA) with US.
"Those issues have been sorted out. It (EUMA) is not for the aircraft, but for the systems in it. That is why the aircraft is flying now. There will be no physical verification,'' he said.
Asked about the comparison with the US Air Force One, ACM Major said, "In these aircraft too, there are several features which exist in Air Force One. We don't have some features. But for our requirements, I think, we have the necessary equipment on board. It will be more than fair to call them the Indian Air Force One.''
India's Air Force One takes off with President on board
2 Apr 2009, 0000 hrs IST, TNN
NEW DELHI: Amid chanting of mantras, breaking of coconuts and a tilak ceremony, the desi Air Force One took to the skies on its inaugural VVIP flight on Wednesday, with President Pratibha Patil heading for Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.
IAF's three new Business Boeing Jets are, of course, not as large, plush or technically sophisticated as US President's Air Force One. Unlike Barack Obama's aircraft, which can fly halfway around the world without refuelling, the Indian version's range is limited to only 3,000 nautical miles.
Moreover, the desi Air Force One certainly does not have what Obama's "Flying Oval Office'' is also believed to carry: An escape pod or capsule to take the US President out of harm's way if the plane itself is hijacked.
Nevertheless, the three aircraft -- christened Rajdhoot, Rajhans and Rajkamal -- formally inducted on Wednesday will ensure the Indian President and Prime Minister will now travel in fully secure comfort like never before.
The aircraft, after all, are equipped with high-tech self-protection suites (SPS) to tackle incoming "hostile'' missiles or other airborne threats, as also encrypted satellite communication facilities and advanced navigation aids.
While the three VVIP jets in themselves came for Rs 734 crore, another Rs 202.93 crore was spent on equipping them with SPS ordered directly through the US government.
The President or PM will have an executive office and bedroom to themselves on board, apart from a secure communication chamber and facilities to host around 50 guests in the specially-configured aircraft.
"Trips will now be more business-like. We will get more time to study, concentrate and apply our minds as the flight will be more smooth,'' said Patil, just before taking off for the North-East.
IAF chief Air Chief Marshal Fali Homi Major, in turn, stepped in to dispel the controversy over whether US inspectors will be periodically allowed to physically inspect the aircraft under the end-use monitoring agreement (EUMA) with US.
"Those issues have been sorted out. It (EUMA) is not for the aircraft, but for the systems in it. That is why the aircraft is flying now. There will be no physical verification,'' he said.
Asked about the comparison with the US Air Force One, ACM Major said, "In these aircraft too, there are several features which exist in Air Force One. We don't have some features. But for our requirements, I think, we have the necessary equipment on board. It will be more than fair to call them the Indian Air Force One.''