A couple of weeks ago, there started to be rumors of Qatar gifting the United States a Boeing 747-8, to be used as the new Air Force One. This is a deal that has been orchestrated by President Trump and his administration. At the time, many people dismissed that rumor as “fake news,” but it has now been confirmed, and the $400 million plane is expected to shortly be handed over to the US.
In this post, I want to discuss the part of this story that makes the least sense to me, as I feel it’s not being discussed enough.
Trump wants the 747 to go to his Presidential Library
Trump intends for this Boeing 747-8 to be updated with new security equipment as soon as possible, so that he can start flying it in the coming months. It won’t have the typical Air Force One safety features, since installing that takes a lot of time, and it’s the reason that the two 747-8s that were ordered directly from Boeing have been delayed so much.
There have obviously been a lot of ethical concerns about this deal, from both Democrats and Republicans, about a foreign government giving such a big gift. Let’s ignore all of that for a moment, and pretend it’s a big, beautiful, ethical deal.
Here’s the part that I can’t wrap my head around. According to the plans, Trump will use the plane as Air Force One until January 1, 2029 (weeks before a new president will be inaugurated). At that point, the next president won’t get to keep the plane, but instead, it’ll be transferred to the Trump Presidential Library Foundation.
So Qatar is gifting the plane to the United States (not to Trump), and taxpayers will be on the hook for the cost of updating the plane with new safety equipment, plus of the cost of transferring it to Trump after he leaves office.
Keep in mind that there’s no guarantee that the actual new Air Force One aircraft will be delivered before Trump leaves office. Quite to the contrary, the expectation is that it’ll be well into the 2030s before the pair of new Air Force One jets are delivered.
So can anyone help me understand why taxpayers should be on the hook for the costs associated with reconfiguring a plane, only for the president to then keep a gift that was supposedly for the United States? It’s a serious question…
What purpose will the 747 serve at the Presidential Library?
The second part of what I can’t wrap my head around is what the Boeing 747 is actually supposed to do in the Trump Presidential Library. People point out that it’s not like Trump will actually be able to fly the plane if it’s in his Presidential Library. So what exactly is the goal of putting a Boeing 747 on static display, without it actually being able to fly?
Call me a cynic, but is it unreasonable to think that he will simply continue to fly the 747 after he leaves office, even though it’s technically transferred to the Trump Presidential Library? Is that pure, baseless conspiracy theory? And if not, why wouldn’t he let the next president (it could be an ally of his!) use it?
For what it’s worth, there is a precedent for a former Air Force One going into a Presidential Library — the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library has an Air Force One Pavilion. The difference is that the plane was placed in the library after it no longer served a purpose.
We’re talking about the SAM 27000, which was based on the Boeing 707. It served as Air Force One until 1990, when it was retired, and replaced by more modern aircraft.
But the distinction is that the plane was gifted by President Bush, and this all happened after the fact. It’s a little different than someone saying “hey, I’m just gonna keep Air Force One, even though it could still serve a purpose.”
Bottom line
The Trump administration is moving forward with accepting a $400 million Boeing 747-8 as a gift from the Qataris. Pretending for a moment that there are no ethical concerns, what I can’t understand is what justification is being used for this to be transferred to the Trump Presidential Library weeks before Trump leaves office.
Beyond that, I can’t actually understand why he’d want it in his Presidential Library, if the goal wasn’t to somehow figure out a way to fly it. It’s not like this is some historical plane that served half a dozen presidents over decades. Instead, it’s just a plane that will carry Trump around for a couple of years…
Anyone have any insights?
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