VIP RAF Voyager
| VIP RAF Voyager | |
|---|---|
| |
| The Royal Air Force's VIP Airbus A330 (RAF Voyager) landing at RAF Brize Norton | |
| Other name(s) | Vespina
Boris Force One (post repaint) |
| Type | Airbus A330 MRTT |
| Serial | ZZ336 |
| First flight | 8 July 2016 (after conversion) |
| Owners and operators | Royal Air Force |
The VIP RAF Voyager, also known as the "Vespina" (its Royal Air Force designation)[1][2][3] 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.[1] 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;[3] 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.[4] 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 took the plane to the 2016 Warsaw summit.[2] 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". It was widely reported that the repaint cost £900,000, although in reality this sum was the entire cost of regular maintenance which included it, and not solely the repaint.[citation needed]
Despite having been fitted as a VIP aircraft since 2016, and having a custom livery since 2020, the British Government and the RAF has insisted that the plane will continue to serve its military purpose of mid-air refueling and personnel transport.[5]
See also
- Air transports of heads of state and government
- Air transport of the British royal family and government
References
- ^ a b "VIP RAF Voyager Ready For Global Role". RAF. 25 June 2020.
- ^ a b "David Cameron to take first flight on converted VIP RAF Voyager". BBC. 5 July 2016.
- ^ a b "Blair flies into trouble". BBC News. 3 August 1998.
- ^ Alastair Jamieson (28 March 2009). "Queen has £7m private jet plans halted by recession". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 31 March 2009. Retrieved 30 March 2010.
- ^ "RAF Voyager: Prime Minister's VIP plane acts as 'petrol station in the sky' for Lightning and Typhoon fighters". Gloucestershire Live. 26 June 2020.