'Blair Force One' plan grounded http://www.thisislondon.com/dynamic/news/top_story.html?in_review_id=3D52205= 3& in_review_text_id=3D486895 > by Ben Leapman Political Reporter Tony Blair has scrapped plans for a customised jet to take him around the=20 world, after reports of a rift with Chancellor Gordon Brown.=20 The =A380 million airliner would have allowed the Prime Minister to travel i= n=20 luxury, with state-of-the-art communications equipment and missile defences.= =20 Ministry of Defence chiefs backed the proposed jet - dubbed Blair Force One=20= -=20 but the Treasury is understood to have objected to the cost. Mr Blair will=20 have to make do with chartering commercial long-haul flights.=20 Original plans were for Downing Street and the royal family to have joint us= e=20 of the customised plane, saving on costs, but the royal household made clear= =20 it saw the proposal as too expensive.=20 Mr Blair, who has come under Tory fire for his recent series of long oversea= s=20 visits, would have faced charges of extravagance if he had gone ahead with a= =20 jet without the Queen's involvement.=20 The MoD was thought to have favoured a new Airbus A330. A converted RAF=20 Tristar air-to-air tanker aircraft would have been a cheaper option.=20 The result would have been a scaled-down version of the two =A3120 million=20 Boeing 747-200B jumbos which carry the US president around the world. Each=20 uses the call sign Air Force One when he is aboard.=20 =20 =20