Frag Out! Magazine
Issue link: https://fragout.uberflip.com/i/861022
But let's focus for now at the first of the above mentioned projects and initiatives handled under the patronage of MOD. On 26 May, a competition for the names of five jets to carry VIPs, announced 10 days earlier, was settled. There were almost 1,500 entries. After vulgar and nonsen- sical entries were winnowed out, the remaining number of entries was still impressive – eventually, the board decid- ed that Gulfstream G550s' patrons would be Prince Józef Poniatowski and General Kazimierz Pułaski. The latter had associations with Poland and the USA. Plus, he fell in ac- tion during the siege of Savannah – a city of Gulfstream's plant where G550s are assembled is located. In the case of Boeing 737/BBJ2 jets, the chosen patrons were: Marshall Józef Piłsudski (aircraft to be supplied in November 2017), Roman Dmowski, and Ignacy Jan Paderewski. The first G550 was delivered to Poland in June (see this issue of FRAG OUT! Magazine). It arrived together with a return- ing group of technicians and cabin crew who completed training program in the United States. Another position in the Air Fair 2017 agenda, closely related to the G550 pro- gram, was signing of a letter of intent between WZL nr 2 S.A. and Gulfstream in connection with establishment of a service center for the two government jets in Bydgoszcz – according to the WZL nr 2 S.A president of the board, an actual agreement concluded between the parties may be signed in 2017, after the staff of the Bydgoszcz-based company is properly trained and certified. Of course, it is unprofitable for WZL to maintain two jets, but such presti- gious order as the one in question, involving taking care of government vehicles may turn out to be a key to lucrative orders on the civil aviation market, where the G500/G550 family is very popular. TRADE SHOWS