President Ram Nath Kovind boards first flight of Air India One-B777 for Chennai; to visit Tirumala temple

President Ram Nath Kovind boarded the Air India One-B777 aircraft on Tuesday (Nov 24) for its inaugural flight to Chennai, according to a Rashtrapati Bhavan statement. President Kovind is visiting Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh to offer prayers at the Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple, it said.

This is the first flight of the Air India One-B777 aircraft with the head of State on board. The aircraft is fuel efficient and has a longer range than the B747-400 that are deployed for similar VVIP operations, a statement read. The aircraft has state-of-the-art interiors with reduced noise levels. 

Air India One is the call sign for the VVIP aircraft used by the president, vice president and prime minister.

On the occasion of the inaugural flight of Air India One-B777, Kovind commended the pilots, crew members and the entire team of the Air India and the Indian Air Force for operating the state-of-the-art aircraft and facilitating VVIP movements within the country and on state visits abroad, the statement said. 

Andhra Pradesh CM Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy and Governor Biswa Bhusan Harichandan received President Ram Nath Kovind at the Renigunta airport on Tuesday morning. The President landed at the airport at 10.45 am. He is scheduled to visit Sri Padmavati deity at Tiruchanuru and the Lord Venkateswara at Tirumala temple.

President Kovind will offer prayers to Lord Venkateswara.

President Kovind took the inaugural Air India One-B777 aircraft from Delhi to Chennai, on his way to Tirupati. Before boarding the flight, the President performed a small inaugural ritual for the brand new aircraft.