August 22, 201213 yr We can only wish. Didn't know that. So if this already happens, it's indeed a nice touch. :smile: Perhaps, but be careful what you wish for... We were chatting about this over on the EIN forums, and practically every pilot agrees, if you know An Taoiseach is flying with you, keep the FD door locked while on the ground or it'll be "HELLO THERE!!! HOW ARE THE LADS!!!! *Shake hands* *Shake Hands* *Kiss Baby* *Smile For Photograph* WILL YEE BE GIVING ME THE VOTE NEXT TIME AROUND!!!! " He's always carrying on as if there was an election the next day... Even with them taking commercial flights the public aren't even happy with them in Business class. For some reason, we just don't seem to like our politicians having any form of comfort, even with the tough job they do... Rónán O Cadhain.
August 22, 201213 yr Haha, ok, I revert my statement on the nice touch. Lets hope it doesn't act as a general rule. ^_^ 'For the people, (still) by the people' may indeed be idealistic at times when it comes to travelling. I guess I just don't like the typical press setups to show that this or that guy is 'so close to the ordinary folks'. -_- But don't forget, next time the big names are around and the press is near, that's your chance to bring up a serious issue they can't avoid. 'Former captain who's asked touchy questions now seeks a new job.' Wait, something is wrong there. :(
August 22, 201213 yr Perhaps, but be careful what you wish for... We were chatting about this over on the EIN forums, and practically every pilot agrees, if you know An Taoiseach is flying with you, keep the FD door locked while on the ground or it'll be "HELLO THERE!!! HOW ARE THE LADS!!!! *Shake hands* *Shake Hands* *Kiss Baby* *Smile For Photograph* WILL YEE BE GIVING ME THE VOTE NEXT TIME AROUND!!!! " He's always carrying on as if there was an election the next day... Even with them taking commercial flights the public aren't even happy with them in Business class. For some reason, we just don't seem to like our politicians having any form of comfort, even with the tough job they do... The problem with me is that I am really fiscally conservative and it frustrates me to no end that the government can spend with practically no limits and no punishment to themselves for bad choices. I would like to see them use something more realistic like a 787 or 777 but their big egos need to fit inside so they need a 747 :P Chris Miller
August 22, 201213 yr The 747 acts as a real symbol of America and all it has achieved, and nice as it may sound, and much cheaper, it wouldn't have the same effect if the president of the USA stumbled out of a max capacity, 189 seat 737, wobbling at the knees, along with 188 people on their holidays to visit the beach... It's up there with your flag and national anthem as a symbol of America that's recognised around the globe... Rónán O Cadhain.
August 22, 201213 yr It's up there with your flag and national anthem as a symbol of America that's recognised around the globe... No, doubt it is indeed a major physiological tool. I'm just a major penny pincher. I think the 747-8i would be a great replacement to the old 747 they have now. There really is no other direct replacement to what the aircraft can do. Chris Miller
August 22, 201213 yr http://en.wikipedia....auer_(aircraft) Nice list on other countries. http://en.wikipedia...._and_government Honduras. http://en.wikipedia....ki/IAI_Westwind India. http://en.wikipedia....r_India_001.jpg The Netherlands. http://en.wikipedia....File:PH-KBX.jpg Tunisia runs an A340-500. The UK. http://en.wikipedia....ueensFlight.jpg We (the Netherlands) also have this one, for when people need to visit the other side of the pond and don't want to stop over in Iceland and Canada on the way: http://www.defensie.nl/english/air_force/materiel/aircraft_and_helicopters/transport_aircraft/gulfstream_iv. Looks like the king of Saudia has the idea... ^_^ Honest to goodness though looking at that list, I'm wondering what all the fuss over here was about, calling our Gulfstream IV "Excessive". So many other countries who's financial affairs are in a disasterous state are flying around in wide-bodied aircraft. Even the amount of A319CJ's and BBJ's is unreal. Well a BBJ might make sense. A BBJ in business class seating lay-out seats about 40 people, which is a good sized trade delegation. A Gulfstream only seats about 12, so if you regularly need to move large delegations a BBJ or ACJ might make sense. Of course I haven't looked at the list of countries that run a BBJ to see if that is really the case. Haha, ok, I revert my statement on the nice touch. Lets hope it doesn't act as a general rule. ^_^ 'For the people, (still) by the people' may indeed be idealistic at times when it comes to travelling. I guess I just don't like the typical press setups to show that this or that guy is 'so close to the ordinary folks'. -_- But don't forget, next time the big names are around and the press is near, that's your chance to bring up a serious issue they can't avoid. 'Former captain who's asked touchy questions now seeks a new job.' Wait, something is wrong there. :( Our current (until september anyway) PM, as well as the one we had in the 90ies regularly cycle(d) to work and not just when the press was watching either. Yeh, It's a shame really what all that money could be spent on instead of equipment that will never/should never be used. Luckily enough in Ireland, we have hardly any spending on defense or fancy things like Government 767's, instead we have free 3rd level education to better our citizens. I think the only way money should be given to those countries is if the country or organisation giving it ensures that they spend it on what they need, not what they want/think they need. And then if they don't want to spend the money on that then tough, you're not getting it, we'll find some other country to help develop... Regards, Ró. If only it were that simple. Especially during the Cold War, but even now, a significant amount of 'aid' that is sent to developing countries is in the form of military hardware or money to buy military hardware with (from companies based in the country sending the aid of course). John-Alan Pascoe
August 22, 201213 yr Bit of a Cold War relict, those large 'command' planes. But I'm surprised how many folks still consider the vital need for such things. It's not so much that they are considered vital, as much as the people responsible for each nation's safety have a sworn duty to put their nation's safety ahead of all other considerations. Anything less would be dereliction of duty. Effectiveness trumps efficiency in defense. Efficiency only comes into play when the same or an even greater level of effectiveness can be met.
August 23, 201213 yr Our current (until september anyway) PM, as well as the one we had in the 90ies regularly cycle(d) to work and not just when the press was watching either. That's the spirit. :smile: RoboRay, I can't comment on your post. But there is a time after the massive retaliation strategy and the old buzz words involved. Well, fortunately I may add. Perhaps that's where I'm coming from. :Peace: Either way, 'which plane to buy', asks the US defence guy. What do you suggest?
August 23, 201213 yr RoboRay, I can't comment on your post. But there is a time after the massive retaliation strategy and the old buzz words involved. Well, fortunately I may add. Perhaps that's where I'm coming from. :Peace: Oh, the people making those decisions understand that, too. They really aren't paranoid or living in the ancient past... they are simply doing their job, and "cost efficiency" is not at the top of the priority list they have to work from. It's on there, but it's ranked somewhere around 9th place. Either way, 'which plane to buy', asks the US defence guy. What do you suggest? Updated 747s seem to be the obvious choice to me. Although a "VC-17" as mentioned above does seem to be an interesting concept, it's too obviously a military aircraft. While Air Force One is a military aircraft, it's an important image that the President arrives in foreign countries as well as many domestic locations in an American "civilian" aircraft, even if only to casual inspection. A commonly-seen commercial airliner serves that purpose well, even if the illusion is only skin-deep.
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