The Wall Street Journal reports that President Trump may be flying onboard a new Air Force One jet before the end of the year, as his frustration with Boeing grows. However, it seems that quite a few shortcuts are being taken, in terms of the typical systems that need to be installed on these special jets.
In this post:
Trump is frustrated by Boeing’s new Air Force One delays
Boeing planes have been transporting US presidents since Roosevelt, and at the moment, a 747-200 serves as “Air Force One.” There are two 747-200s in the Air Force fleet, designated as VC-25As, that can potentially operate as Air Force One (it’s only Air Force One if the president is onboard). The first of these jets was delivered in 1990.
Obviously this is an aging plane, so roughly a decade ago, the government entered into an agreement with Boeing to acquire two new 747-8s, to act as Air Force One. However, when Trump entered office for his first term, he wasn’t happy with the deal the government was getting, so he claimed to reach a new deal with Boeing, for the two planes to be delivered for $3.9 billion. As a White House spokesperson explained at the time:
“President Trump has reached an informal deal with Boeing on a fixed price contract for the new Air Force One Program. Thanks to the President’s negotiations, the contract will save the taxpayers more than $1.4 Billion.”
While the planes were supposed to be ready in 2024, that’s not working out too well. If you think Boeing is having delivery delays with passenger aircraft, wait until you hear this. Boeing representatives have signaled that the planes likely can’t be delivered for another decade, until around 2035, and for billions over budget.
Boeing has reportedly struggled with the planes’ complicated wiring and structural issues, including some related to the the holes for doors that need to be cut into the lower lobes of the aircraft.
Trump has plans to fly new Air Force One before end of 2025
Frustrated by these delays, Trump has now commissioned smaller defense contractor L3Harris to ready an interim Air Force One, so that it can be flying before the end of the year. Specifically, the company is being tasked with overhauling a Boeing 747 formerly used by the Qatari government, and L3Harris is retrofitting the plane with certain specialized systems, to transform it into a presidential jet. It appears that the jet in question is a 13-year-old 747-8 with the registration code P4-HBJ.
Trump wants the plane ready by this fall, and reportedly has been frequently asking for updates. The interim jet would complement the current pair of jets. The Air Force has reportedly long wanted a third jet to serve as a backup, when one of the current planes is undergoing maintenance.
Of course with this project being rushed so much, that creates some challenges. The plane won’t be as capable as the other jets that act as Air Force One, and modifications will be limited, including with security equipment.
Now, it remains to be seen if the jet gets Trump’s beloved “patriotic” paint job, or if it’ll get the livery that was approved a couple of years ago. I’d assume the former, but who knows. One of the concerns with Trump’s livery of choice is that the dark blue paint may increase the heat signature on the plane, and require time consuming modifications to avoid interfering with key electronics systems.
Bottom line
For a decade now, the government has been working on Air Force One replacements, with two Boeing 747-8s having been ordered. While the planes were supposed to be delivered in 2024, that timeline has been delayed all the way to 2035.
Trump is growing impatient and wants to fly a new Air Force One ASAP. As a result, the government has picked up a Boeing 747 from Qatar, and it’s now being modified. Trump hopes to fly this plane within months, by the fall. Interestingly, it’ll be lacking a lot of the equipment that’s typically associated with Air Force One.
What do you make of this interim Air Force One solution?
I wonder how much of the delay is because he insisted on his usual low-quality poor-outcome 'deal' making during his first term.
Also for "government efficiency", adding a 3rd jumbo jet hardly makes sense... But I guess anything for the mad king?
Trump should just wet lease the Global Airlines A380.
Your post should have been about Boeing’s incompetence, rather than questioning Trump finding a temporary solution. At least Trump has a solution.
Real Incompetence is that in 4 years Biden didn’t do sh!t about it, or about anything else.
LOL.
Didn't Trump insist on using the planes that were intended to go to Transaero? Seems like if he'd actually not meddled with this as well then Boeing could've been further along the line with this instead of trying to adapt something that wasn't made for this purpose.
It was meant to save money rather than buy a new plane.
If a new plane was built, they usually build it first then ship it to be modified rather than have secret equipment installed using thousands of workers with no security clearance.
Trump only cares about the Trump "brand". And notice how he always tries to "sell" you something. Bibles, sneakers, NFTs, even Trump 2028 hats.
With all the problems in the world, this is what he's frustrated and obsessing about.
Any other POTUS would not care.
Remember, this is the people's plane and it's to project and promote American power, not someone's own brand.
And as other have mentioned below, it is hypocritical to talk about...
Trump only cares about the Trump "brand". And notice how he always tries to "sell" you something. Bibles, sneakers, NFTs, even Trump 2028 hats.
With all the problems in the world, this is what he's frustrated and obsessing about.
Any other POTUS would not care.
Remember, this is the people's plane and it's to project and promote American power, not someone's own brand.
And as other have mentioned below, it is hypocritical to talk about waste, fraud, and abuse when this is a perfect example of waste and abuse. And there is talk of having a full-scale parade on his birthday, but that's a story for another day.
You get the point.
These are all troubling but they are primarily optical. The important thing in any administration is to follow the money and look at the real-world effects of policy and personnel. (e.g., we hear about some troubling family separations and deportations; they were initiated during Biden.)
I think we all knew, on both sides of the aisle, that electing Donald Trump would entail dramatic developments.
100 days are not enough to judge the improvement or...
These are all troubling but they are primarily optical. The important thing in any administration is to follow the money and look at the real-world effects of policy and personnel. (e.g., we hear about some troubling family separations and deportations; they were initiated during Biden.)
I think we all knew, on both sides of the aisle, that electing Donald Trump would entail dramatic developments.
100 days are not enough to judge the improvement or damage. And I feel bad for all the panicky boomers who cashed out first week of April and the Dow is sitting pretty still. Tea Party mirror image.
100 days is a benchmark because that's the honeymoon period. It tends to be when presidents get the most and most important legislation of their terms done. Trump spent that time firing federal workers, raging about DEI, and crashing the stock market. Sure things are likely to stabilize, but as long as he continues to act the way he has been, nothing is getting better.
I guess the govt can fork out all this cash rather than get medical attention to those in need. The hypocritical right wing.
The contract with Boeing is a fixed cost contract. Boeing eats the overrun unless the gov't asks for changes.
I would be surprised to see this new aircraft being used for international trips, it’s going to be used for “flagship” domestic trips that plays well when AF1 lands at LAX for F.IFA and Olympics where the chance of a missle attack is less of an issue compared to a trip to Tel Aviv.
It’s going to be the Mar-a-Lago Express. Lots of flash and very little substance, like him.
Boeing's incompetence is clear, sure. No big surprise this decade. However, Air Force One in its current state is more than adequate and perhaps the most maintained aircraft in the world.
The irony of burning down the country economically and socially and all you can do is whine and kick about not having a pretty new airplane.
It really is the kind of behavior you'd expect from a banana republic dictator, not the supposed Leader of the Free World
Only Americans think of their president as being Leader of the Free World. The rest of the Free World does not.
In defense of Dusty he did say, "supposed." It is meant to be questionable. And it is. You are both right.
Putting aside Trump. How can it take so long for Boeing to do this project? A decade more?! It's insane.
Follow the dollars. As I recall it is a fixed price contract. Boeing is hurting and not in much of position to just through money at the project. While it is a high profile project it is still just another project. Airplanes are highly integrated machines, much different from remodeling a house. The door you see the president walk out of in the lower part of the airplane is not standard. You don't just chop...
Follow the dollars. As I recall it is a fixed price contract. Boeing is hurting and not in much of position to just through money at the project. While it is a high profile project it is still just another project. Airplanes are highly integrated machines, much different from remodeling a house. The door you see the president walk out of in the lower part of the airplane is not standard. You don't just chop a hole in the plane and call it good. There is a lot of structure involved, which adds weight and begins to conflict with various requirements. Then there is all the electronics which drive other EM interferences. As DC Guy said, it would have been better to build from ground up instead of trying to remodel. Then you have the FAA and Air Force highly scrutinizing every detail. This scrutiny is even more so after the 737Max debacle.
If there is such an urgent demand for the planes, the government should open the check book and make it happen. Nothing solves a time crunch better than throwing dollars at the problem.
Boeing went down the sh**er when they allowed corporate to move HQ from Seattle. Domino effect.
Remember it was Trump that proudly told Americans how much money he had saved them by buying two 747-8i jets that had been built for a Russian airline that went bankrupt. Boeing tried to tell him it would be cheaper and faster to build two new aircraft from scratch but no, Trump knew better because he always claims he is an expert on everything. The USAF will be stuck with a one off airplane that...
Remember it was Trump that proudly told Americans how much money he had saved them by buying two 747-8i jets that had been built for a Russian airline that went bankrupt. Boeing tried to tell him it would be cheaper and faster to build two new aircraft from scratch but no, Trump knew better because he always claims he is an expert on everything. The USAF will be stuck with a one off airplane that does not meet even minimal requirements for presidential safety, security or standards. Meanwhile the other two jets are being carved up like a Halloween pumpkin with multi billion dollar cost overruns and not likely to enter service before 2030. Let Trump buy the airplane if it’s so important to him. He just wants it to show off to the world.
It's a fixed cost contract. Boeing is responsible for the overrun costs.
They are until they aren't. All Boeing has to do is threaten to walk away once whatever contractual penalties are less expensive than continuing the program at their expense, and the federal government will renegotiate because they have no choice.
They need the planes; the existing ones are over 30 years old and parts are becoming scarce. For political reasons they can hardly outsource the job to Airbus (not like they produce planes in this...
They are until they aren't. All Boeing has to do is threaten to walk away once whatever contractual penalties are less expensive than continuing the program at their expense, and the federal government will renegotiate because they have no choice.
They need the planes; the existing ones are over 30 years old and parts are becoming scarce. For political reasons they can hardly outsource the job to Airbus (not like they produce planes in this size range anymore). And they can't let Boeing bankrupt themselves on this project given all of the other government contracts they have (like the KC-46, T-7, F-47, etc.).
It might take the form of extra payments on another program to shore up Boeing's finances rather than officially walking back the fixed-cost contract, but overall the US government can't let Boeing fail, so they'll be on the hook for all of Boeing's cost overruns one way or another.
"..All Boeing has to do is threaten..."??? If Boeing did that, Trump would retaliate and maybe bomb the Boeing factory. You don't cross Trump without expecting retaliation.
The last thing Boeing wants is an Airbus Air Force One.
Trump and Co want to rant about waste, corruption, and fraud. This rebuilt Qatari plane will cost as much as all the current DOGE savings. As stated it will be less secure than the current aircraft. All so he can fly around in a different airplane. When it comes down to it, the airplanes are nothing more than transportation. He is adding government expenditure for no reason beyond his personal ego.
I, like all here, am sufficiently uninformed as to the wisdom of adding this interim plane. But, I just can't imagine this isn't simply a case of an impatient, spoiled man-child frustrated his new toys are delayed.
I'd be worried about the Russians bugging the plane but why would they go through the trouble when they've already taken over our government? Trump and his team can fly in style to Moscow for meetings with their SVR handlers.
Trump could be dead at 88 before the two 747-8i aircraft are finished.
As far as the Qatari plane, why not? Just hand over nuclear authority to the VP while the prez is aboard the Qatari plane.
As far as the livery, Biden changed the livery. It is similar to but not the same as the old 747-200.
I think the article itself suffers because it appears to be AI-generated instead of from an actual writer. Proof is the final two paragraphs, which are mere rewrites from the main content and fail to add anything to the story.
What an odd comment. The article doesn’t seem AI generated, it’s very much in Ben’s voice. And your “proof” is the final two paragraphs because they are repetitive? You mean the final two paragraphs which wrap up the story?
Ben often concludes his articles with an "in summary" paragraph or two, in case anyone just wanted the Cliff's Notes.
I think it’s hilarious all of these cry baby liberals whining about Trump despite the fact he absolutely crushed Kamala. Why? Because Biden ran this country into the ground! 40 year high inflation, 3 new wars started by him, record crime, increased income inequality, devaluing the dollar, horrible trade deals, botched Afghanistan withdrawal resulting in dead Americans and millions in military equipment left to the Taliban, corruption, cocaine bags, coups, using the judicial system to...
I think it’s hilarious all of these cry baby liberals whining about Trump despite the fact he absolutely crushed Kamala. Why? Because Biden ran this country into the ground! 40 year high inflation, 3 new wars started by him, record crime, increased income inequality, devaluing the dollar, horrible trade deals, botched Afghanistan withdrawal resulting in dead Americans and millions in military equipment left to the Taliban, corruption, cocaine bags, coups, using the judicial system to raid his home, convict, arrest their political opponents, men in women’s sports and locker rooms, etc etc etc. Not a peep from you guys. But NOW you want us to listen to you. Shut the Front Door, respectfully. America has spoken! You can say America regrets it. Don’t care. Trump won! The House is RED. Supreme Court is RED! Senate is RED. You are losing. Wise up!
Congratulations on creating a lengthy and factually empty rant which has nothing to do with the article.
The same comment can apply to all the previous rants which tfied to malign President Trump
Oh please MAGA troll, go back under whatever FOX News/Newsmax generated rock you came from. Fact: Trump won the popular vote by the narrowest margin since Nixon did in ‘68 (nothing to crow about there). Fact: the stock market during Trump’s first 100 days in office has been the worst since the administration of Richard Nixon (and, certainly nothing to be proud of there).
If you followed reliable news sources such as NYT and...
Oh please MAGA troll, go back under whatever FOX News/Newsmax generated rock you came from. Fact: Trump won the popular vote by the narrowest margin since Nixon did in ‘68 (nothing to crow about there). Fact: the stock market during Trump’s first 100 days in office has been the worst since the administration of Richard Nixon (and, certainly nothing to be proud of there).
If you followed reliable news sources such as NYT and CNN you would know these things and stop posting your nonsense. But wait, I forgot everything that doesn’t fit your silly, misinformed narrative is fake news. Guess again, buddy.
And even hard right provocateur Ann Coulter said of Trump’s televised two-hour Cabinet meeting “Would it be possible to have a cabinet meeting without the Kim Jong il–style tributes?” The thing’s narcissistic, dictator loving and bullying ways are even making her weary!
THANK YOU
@brian. Sir, respectfully, this is a Wendy’s.
Part of the reason the two Rossiya 748's are taking so long is that they have to be stripped down to the bones and checked for faults and surveillance equipment. Air Force One is easily the most secure and sensitive passenger aircraft on the planet, and they take it seriously.
There's no way the Secret Service, NSA, or Department of Defense would allow a sitting president to fly around on some tacky Arab's toy...
Part of the reason the two Rossiya 748's are taking so long is that they have to be stripped down to the bones and checked for faults and surveillance equipment. Air Force One is easily the most secure and sensitive passenger aircraft on the planet, and they take it seriously.
There's no way the Secret Service, NSA, or Department of Defense would allow a sitting president to fly around on some tacky Arab's toy jet at the drop of a hat. It's probably full of bugs, cameras, and hackable software. There's also no mechanism for the Department of Defense to buy a used jet for which Congress has not appropriated funds. Congress already gave the money to buy two planes. He's just impatient. Trump only wants it because he saw the golden toilets onboard and fell in love. He wishes he could be an Arab dictator, with concubines, machine guns, and solid gold fixtures. Trash.
I find the outrage over the more contemporary paint job fascinating.
Especially given the old, dated livery harkens back to an ere where The Agencies ran the world, we had clandestine coups being orchestrated monthly and colonialism was at its nadir.
It's the 21st Century and we have a new view of the world. A paintjob from 1960's America ain't cutting it.
Linking an airplane livery to CIA conspiracy theories is a childish reach, even for the internet.
It tracks, he also confused nadir and zenith.
It's weird because neither is an appropriate adjective for the state of colonialism in the 1960s.
It's also from a time when America was respected and not a laughing stock.
What do you mean "more contemporary" lol it ironically looks more dated than the old scheme
He probably would have had the new planes now, if he had not stuck his nose in the original deal and messed around with all the specs including the original paint job. His new changes and adding the cost of this added lease will probably make this deal more costly than the original one!
I am pretty sure that plane is in San Antonio right now at a maintenance facility. I saw it there yesterday.
I'm not a Trump supporter nor a Trump defender, but seriously, how on Earth can Boeing actually say it's going to take another 10 years to build these planes? This should be Boeing's most important project. Considering how much money they're given by the US GOV, how is saying, "oh wait another 10 years and pay us billions more acceptable?" Wild
The gov is basically asking Boeing to stop what they're doing and do two rush custom jobs. Of course Boeing doesn't want to do it given how behind they are on the 777X project and how big the 737MAX backlog is. If the gov really needs this, they're going to have to pay accordingly. Welcome to the result of all the aerospace and defense contractor mergers of the '90s-2000s.
---I find the outrage over the more contemporary paint job fascinating.
Especially given the old, dated livery harkens back to an ere where The Agencies ran the world, we had clandestine coups being orchestrated monthly and colonialism was at its nadir.
It's the 21st Century and we have a new view of the world. A paintjob from 1960's America ain't cutting it.---
Yeah, it really shows how dysfunctional Boeing is at the moment.
I heard 2 Korean AirLines 748,s were being converted.
Different project. There are 5 ex-Korean Air planes being modified for the new Doomsday planes.
Where is he getting the money for this aircraft?
Selling MAGA amenity kits
Probably from the same place we got $200 BILLION to fund a foreign war with Russia.
@Brian
Please educate yourself before spouting off
1. Russia invaded Ukraine, not the other way around, and Trump did nothing about it in his first term (nor did Obama). Trump actually BLACKMAILED Zelensky instead for dirt on Biden, which is why he was impeached the first time.
2. Aid to Ukraine was primarily US military equipment that had been collecting dust in stateside warehouses for decades, not cash
3. What cash...
@Brian
Please educate yourself before spouting off
1. Russia invaded Ukraine, not the other way around, and Trump did nothing about it in his first term (nor did Obama). Trump actually BLACKMAILED Zelensky instead for dirt on Biden, which is why he was impeached the first time.
2. Aid to Ukraine was primarily US military equipment that had been collecting dust in stateside warehouses for decades, not cash
3. What cash was spent predominantly went to US COMPANIES to expand production of missiles and munitions to supply to Ukraine, ADDING US JOBS FOR US WORKERS
I guarantee you, you don't want the future where Russia gets everything it wants from this war. That gives China the green light to take Taiwan, and Russia can feel free to invade other Euro countries in a decade or two. Because what do they have to fear if we won't do anything about it?
@Brian - do us all a favor and just fly away! Please!!
Sorry Donny, you can have it fast and done right, but it won't be cheap. Or you can have it fast and cheap, but corners will be cut. Thought a businessman would know that.
It would be a tragedy for every other passenger onboard if the "new" rushed-to-market 747 Air Force One suffered a mid-air technical fault and plummeted to the ground in a fireball.
I'd definitely feel bad for the flight crew, but losing any combination of Bondi, Hegseth, Bessent, Patel, Gabbard, Ratcliffe, Noem, and RFK would be a nice silver lining for the country.
I'm fairly sure that that much garbage is not allowed to travel on the same confined space together at the same time, it's not safe for the crew.
Inappropriate.
If they didn't want to get called garbage, maybe they shouldn't act like garbage.
you read my mind......
OMAAT audience's two most hated topics, Trump and Boeing.
Which side would they pick?
Rumour Control is putting it about that POTUS has ordered an all-singing-all-dancing A350.
If this 'deal' falls through, I hear Rossiya might have some 747s available.
"It appears that the jet in question is a 13-year-old 747-8 with the registration code P4-HBJ."
I saw this plane on the way to LAX in February of last year as I was entering the tunnel on Sepulveda, parked remotely at the point where Sepulveda meets runway 25L. Good times.
F**k Trump for extorting my firm for free legal services.
F**k Trump for the reputational damage he has caused to America.
America is perceived as poorly as thd Biden Administration in many countries in this second Trump Administration.
"F**k Trump for extorting my firm for free legal services."
Girl, give it up already.
Sounds like you should take this one up with your employer.
It’s on parol from the institution for the correction of imbalanced souls, one has to forgive such gross ignorance.
They wish they were an equity partner at Skadden, but really they are a barista at Starbucks.
Matthew, I don’t have to wish anything. You have to wish I read your irrelevant third-rate blog. I read Gary Leff’s blog even though he has a micropenis. Should I extrapolate that to mean you have no penis at all?
Arps... will you please depart the room ? and go back on your meds
Being obsessed with someone's penis size, totally something that someone with a BDE would do.
P4 HBJ is the aircraft
The baby was upset his oolour scheme wouldn't end up on his big aer-o-plane before his term came to an end...
You can bet there's some infantile reason behind this since security is clearly going to be compromised with these shortcuts and the cost savings don't seem to matter.
I read about his tour of a Qatari B747 that was in Florida for his inspection, you can see his motorcade next to the bird in this article;
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2025-03-26/boeing-s-air-force-one-delay-has-trump-looking-at-747-from-qatar