(Note: We have currently halted the work on Europe's special aircraft. After completing Asia, we will return to Europe.)
The current Konrad Adenauer is a former Lufthansa Technik Airbus A350-900 re-configured into a VIP configuration with political-parliamentary operations, and has separate spaces to allow for private meetings, roundtables and other activities. The rest of the space in the aircraft has been given over to the delegations that typically travel with the VIPs. These areas have generous seating arrangements, bathrooms and modern galley equipment. As well as the visible alterations, the jet will have been fitted with cutting edge communications and radar technology. It may well have defensive systems on board too, but that’s the sort of thing governments like to keep tightly under wraps. All in, the aircraft will seat around 120 people and be capable of flying incredible ranges.
The VIP RAF Voyager, also known as the "Vespina" (its Royal Air Force designation) and with a military registration of ZZ336, refers to a customised Airbus A330 MRTT owned and operated by the Royal Air Force that is the first principal VIP transport plane for British government ministers and the British royal family. While the RAF operates a fleet of Voyagers, the VIP RAF Voyager refers specifically to one painted in a United Kingdom livery and fitted with business class seats and media facilities, similar to other dedicated air transports of heads of state and government.
Proposals to provide a new dedicated VIP transport aircraft, for governmental or royal use, were first mooted in 1998 under Prime Minister Tony Blair; the proposed aircraft was nicknamed "Blair Force One" (a joking reference to Air Force One). In March 2009 a proposal for a £7 million 12-seater private jet plans were halted by recession. It was not until the end of 2015 that the British Government announced that one VIP RAF Voyager will be converted from a normal RAF Voyager. This was completed in 2016 at a cost of £10 million, with then-Prime Minister David Cameron taking the plane ("Cam Force One") to the 2016 Warsaw summit. In June 2020, Prime Minister Boris Johnson ordered that the plane be painted in a United Kingdom-themed red, white, and blue livery, earning it the nickname "Boris Force One". Johnson projected that the entire rebrand would cost about £900,000.
Cotam Unité is used as the air traffic control call sign of any French Air Force aircraft carrying the President of France. From the 1960s to 1994, COTAM was the acronym for the French Air Force's Military Air Transport Command (Commandement du transport aérien militaire). In November 2010, the Governmental transport squadron (ETEC 65) received a newly refurbished Airbus A330 ordered by the government to be used as the presidential (or prime ministerial) aircraft replacing two Airbus A319. The Transport Squadron ET/060 also has the following aircraft for VIP transport:
The Italian Air Force operates three Airbus A319 Corporate Jets, three Dassault Falcon 900s and two Dassault Falcon 50s for government transport. Two AgustaWestland AW139 are operated for use by the President and government officials, and are also used by the Pope. An Airbus A340-500 was leased for longer-distance trips in 2016 and phased out in 2018. All aircraft and helicopters are operated by the 31st Wing based in Rome Ciampino Airport.
The Spanish Air Force operates two customized Airbus A310s[106] and five Falcon 900s, for transportation of the King, the Prime Minister, high-ranking government officials and the Spanish Royal Family. These transportation services are provided by the 45th Group of the Air Force, based in Torrejón Air Base, 24 kilometers (15 mi) away from Madrid. A new unit, an Airbus 330, is pending approval by the Council of Ministers of Spain. This will be the new official aircraft of the King and the Prime Minister. Usually when the Prime Minister and high-ranking officials travel, they use the Airbus A310 and use 1 of the Falcon 900s as a support aircraft.
Previously, Spanish Air Force Boeing KC-707Cs were utilized.
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The President of Ukraine, along with high-ranking Ukrainian government officials are allotted two aircraft: an Airbus A319-100 (registered UR-ABA) and an Antonov An-148 (registered UR-UKR), both of which were originally operated by Ukraine Air Enterprise, under the state-owned State Management of Affairs. The An-148, along with an Mi-8MTV-1, was transferred to Ukrainian Ministry of Defence in 2021.
Following the outbreak of the 2022 Russia-Ukraine military hostilities, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president of Ukraine, preferred to use an assortment of different transport aircraft operated by other the air forces of other nations for international visits, on account of safety concerns. Between 2022 and 2023, Zelenskyy traveled abroad on four different VIP aircraft: the first by a United States Air Force (USAF) Boeing C-40B Clipper for his 2022 visit to the United States, the second by a Royal Air Force (RAF) Boeing C-17 for his 2023 visit to the United Kingdom, the third by an RAF Airbus A321 on a trip directly from the United Kingdom to France, and finally, by a Dassault Falcon 7X on a connecting trip from France to Belgium and to return to Poland.
As of June 2022, the Polish Government operates a fleet of five aircraft for VIP transport. This includes two Boeing BBJ2 in custom configuration for 65 passengers and featuring secure communication systems as well as anti-missile defense systems, one reconfigured Boeing 737-800NG with 132 seats, and two Gulfstream G550 each capable of carrying 16 passengers. The aircraft are operated and maintained by the Polish Air Force 1st Airlift Air Base.
During People's Republic of Poland the aircraft used for head of state transport included Lisunov Li-2, Ilyushin Il-14, Il-18, Tupolev Tu-134A, Yakovlev Yak-40. From 1990 the Polish Air Force operated two modified Tupolev Tu-154M Lux, additionally a number of Yakovlev Yak-40 and PZL M28 Bryza fixed-wing aircraft, Mil Mi-8, PZL W-3 Sokół and Bell 412 helicopters were used by 36th Special Aviation Regiment in Warsaw. On 4 December 2003, a Polish Air Force Mil Mi-8 carrying the Polish prime minister crashed in a forest near Warsaw. Even though the helicopter was lost, all 15 people on board survived. Tu-154M tail number 101, carrying the President of Poland Lech Kaczyński, crashed in April 2010. The remaining Tu-154M and all Yak-40s were retired in 2011, while the 36th Regiment was disbanded. Due to lack of the VIP fleet both the president and prime minister often used Polish Air Force EADS CASA C-295Ms for domestic flight and due to civil aviation restrictions.
Between June 2010 and December 2018 the Government of Poland used two Embraer ERJ-175LR (ERJ-170-200LR) leased from LOT Polish Airlines to carry out state flights. Since 2012 Polish Air Force 1st Airlift Air Base in Warsaw-Okecie operates VIP helicopters for domestic transportation and since 2018 the long range passenger jets. The HEAD instruction for organizing the flights within the Polish Armed Forces gives the HEAD flight status when there is the president, prime minister or the parliament speakers on board. The flights carried by LOT are operated with both the rules of the civil procedures and in line with the unofficial civil HEAD instruction.