Romanian President Nicusor Dan is getting a bad rap for the military plane he uses for official foreign travel.
The C-27J Spartan aircraft which he traveled to the ‘Coalition of the Willing’ meeting in Paris on Tuesday was unable to return from the French capital for almost 24 hours due to heavy snow in the French capital.
It wasn’t the bad weather however that generated the most comment, but the quality of the airplane used by the president and his entourage.
The plane, acquired by the Romanian Air Force in 2010, had to delay its departure from Paris twice due to weather conditions, finally leaving on Wednesday afternoon. The flight took 4 1/2 hours, far longer than a regular commercial flight, during which time he had no communications with the outside world.
“It is not normal to be disconnected from what is happening,” the president said.
He also acknowledged that it wasn’t the first time he’d been grounded. He said he was once stranded in Germany, when his Spartan plane couldn’t take off for technical reasons.
The prolonged delay caused embarrassment in the NATO and EU member and also raised questions about the aircraft used by the president for foreign travel.
Critics said the Romanian president should have access to a modern plane, something Dan said was not feasible this year arguing Romania’s priority was to cut budget expenditure.
“Let’s be clear, Spartan is an improvisation. The Spartan is a last resort option….It’s a complicated public situation and the president wants to show he’s cost-cutting and I understand this, but we… still need to present ourselves honorably in the world,” said ex-presidential adviser Iulian Fota.
The C-27J Spartan aircraft the president flew to Paris on belongs to the Romanian Air Force and was acquired in 2010, according to the Air Force website, roaf.ro.
It was designed for military purposes, with superior maneuvering capabilities and tactics. It is used for peacekeeping and humanitarian missions, providing direct air transport in the theater, 24 hours. Romania’s government last had a presidential plane in 2010, after which presidents would charter a Tarom plane for foreign visits.
After the Paris mishap, Dan said that for future foreign visits, the presidential office would charter a plane.
Dan was in Paris on Tuesday for the ‘Coalition of the Willing’ meeting where leaders from 35 countries including and US representatives agreed on security guarantees for Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire with Russia. Those included plans to deploy a multinational military force on the ground.
His return scheduled for Tuesday evening and then Wednesday morning was delayed due to heavy snow and high winds.
Some 140 flights were cancelled at Paris’s Charles de Gaulle and Orly airports on Wednesday morning because of snowfall and fierce cold, the French transport minister said.
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