Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and son Xavier depart New Delhi, India on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023. Trudeau’s departure was delayed several days due to a technical issue with his military aircraft. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)
The Royal Canadian Air Force sent a CC-150 Polaris to India from CFB Trenton Sunday night to pick up Trudeau and the Canadian delegation. A Challenger jet was sent as a contingency.
In the meantime, a technician with a replacement part was flown over on a commercial flight and the plane was able to take off Tuesday morning.
For security reasons, the prime minister does not fly commercial.
Pilots need training before flying new fleet: DND
The Polaris fleet is more than 30 years old and its lifespan is set to end in 2027. Government officials say extending that further would be extremely difficult due to the age of the technology.
In July, the federal government purchased nine transport planes, some new and some used, to replace the existing fleet.
The first of those planes arrived in Ottawa on Aug. 31. So why wasn’t it used on this trip?
According to National Defence officials, aircrew conversion training must be completed before the aircraft can enter service.
Canadian crews have been training to fly the new aircraft in the United Kingdom since January. It takes about three months of training on average to get a Polaris pilot ready to fly the new Airbus, National Defence officials said in a background briefing for reporters earlier this summer.
The 24 Sussex of the sky
While the United States’ Air Force One has appeared in films and on TV, Canada’s VIP plane was once referred to as “Air Farce One” by former prime minister Jean Chrétien.
Like the debate over what to do with 24 Sussex, the official residence of Canada’s prime ministers, conversations about replacing or spending money on the fleet have been dogged by controversy.
After attacking then prime minister Brian Mulroney for paying $56 million to convert the plane into a VIP transport, Chrétien never used the upgraded Can Force One during his time in office. He nicknamed it the flying “Taj Mahal.”