British Government to Acquire Aircraft

[DTVAirport]

Yes, this is taken from Airliners.net, but who cares it makes interesting reading.

So, which aircraft do you think they will buy? Almost certain to be Airbus machines?

This is already being dubbed Blair Force One, but I prefer to call it British Blairways!

[MaltaAirSpotter]

A or B?

You never know with the Brits. BA is not keen on the A380, even though it has substantial British input in it. And their competitors will be flying it. But I guess that BA is a different story from te British government

On the other hand, a Blair Force One could be anything from a BBJ, A319CJ to an A340 or 777.

Whatever it is, it will always be nicer than a Queen's Flight BAe 146.

Pity the VC-10s are too old for this job.... the last of the REAL British airliners.

[DTVAirport]

Well, this is my view, Airbus shorthaul models are better than Boeing shorthaul models, and Boeing longhaul models are better than Airbus longhaul models.

So, if they go for a long haul model, I hope they go for either the B787-800, B777-200ER/200LR/300ER or the B747-800, whereas if they go for shorthaul, I hope they go for the A319, A320-200 or A321-200.

[G-VEIL]

This is already being dubbed Blair Force One, but I prefer to call it British Blairways!

This is just the usual right-wing media rubbish you expect from the newspapers here in UK. The truth is the Royal flight is getting on a bit in age and they are looking at what can be done as replacements.

[uy707]

You never know with the Brits. BA is not keen on the A380, even though it has substantial British input in it. And their competitors will be flying it. But I guess that BA is a different story from te British government

On the other hand, a Blair Force One could be anything from a BBJ, A319CJ to an A340 or 777.

Whatever it is, it will always be nicer than a Queen's Flight BAe 146.

Pity the VC-10s are too old for this job.... the last of the REAL British airliners.

Yes too bad for the VC10
My idea
-most British parts as possible starting with the engines, wings, avionics ....
+most stately looking mount
= either a pair of A330-200s to go in par with the future tankers in terms of global operating costs or
the 340-500, four engines, fair operating costs and soon avialable at a nice price of purchase.
Alain

[exmanx]

This is just the usual right-wing media rubbish you expect from the newspapers here in UK. The truth is the Royal flight is getting on a bit in age and they are looking at what can be done as replacements.

In one Rob. While I don't condone the use willy-nilly of government equipment, a secure form of transport is essential these days, and the ageing 146's need replacing with something that doesn't say" We can't afford to upgrade".

However, as a 146 replacement I think something along the lines of a Global Express would be more suitable in this day and age. A319's, B.737's etc are a bit too big in my view - unless they are to be used for long-distance. But I would personally prefer to see aircraft chartered for this purpose.

Who knows, they might make a sensible decision one day!

Andy

[AA 1818]

I think something along the lines of a Global Express would be more suitable in this day and age. A319's, B.737's etc are a bit too big in my view - unless they are to be used for long-distance.
Andy

That's what I was thinking. A GLobal Express would do incredibly well for this purpose, but then again, the government may want to make a big entrance everywhere they go (like the US gov't does with the 747s used for AirForce1) so maybe they could be looking at something much lager than is possibly necessary. In that case I hope that they can order the 787 or even a 777-200LR. Then again, an A380 would look great too!

[KiwiRob]

I think a pair of A340-500's would look pretty flash.

[AA 1818]

I think a pair of A340-500's would look pretty flash.

You know what, I think that would make be a very good move. I mean, it's a European product, and with the range of the A345, the British gov't will be able to fly almost anywhere non-stop. The other thing, is that they will not have to worry about ETOPS, and the A350 will make quite an entrance anywhere it goes. So, altough the 772-LR would be a good fit, I agree with you that the A345 would be a better fit for the British Gov't.