Boeing VC-25A VC-25B Air Force One

Grey Havoc said:
https://www.flightglobal.com/fixed-...rce-one-modifications-of-747-8/137197.article
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sgeorges4 said:
air force one concept from boeing image secure website, the livery is different from both the classic and the trump one
https://secure.boeingimages.com/CS....iew&VBID=2JRSN2AER45IOB&PN=1&WS=SearchResults
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The two future Boeing VC-25B presidential aircrafts will wear a paint scheme, which is more in line with the ones on the existing Boeing VC-25A presidential aircrafts. But a resident from Florida might call the new paint scheme "Woke Force One". :p
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/biden-dumps-trumps-air-force-one-paint-job-for-iconic-design
 
To be fair, the livery Trump proposed wasn't half bad, actually. One could have feared much worse, bearing in mind the instigator, and in most other government flying services it would've constituted an improvement. But it should have been glaringly obvious any attempt to drastically alter something so iconic and timelessly classy as the AF1 paint job without it ending up a regression was doomed to failure.
 
https://www.reuters.com/business/ae...elayed-until-2029-or-later-senior-2025-02-17/
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/19/us/politics/trump-musk-air-force-one-boeing.html
President Trump, furious about delays in delivering two new Air Force One jets, has empowered Elon Musk to explore drastic options to prod Boeing to move faster, including relaxing security clearance standards for some who work on the presidential planes.

His administration has even discussed whether a luxury jet could be acquired and refitted during the wait, according to five people with knowledge of the discussions who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe closely held deliberations.
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Boeing and the USAF have lowered security clearance requirements for workers on the VC-25B “Air Force One” program. This change addresses longstanding workforce challenges and aims to reduce delays in the program.

A few weeks ago at the Palm Beach International Airport (PBI), POTUS 47 visited a 13-year-old Boeing 747-8 BBJ, formerly owned by Qatar's royal family.

IMHO this new Air Force One will just be a normal Boeing 747-8 BBJ with less sensitive systems (smaller C4I center in the upper deck, no AAR, no EMI protection, no foldbale boarding stairs in the cargo deck etc.) as originally planned, so that current US administration can use it before the end of its second term in January 2029. ;) :rolleyes:

Source (Paywall):
https://aviationweek.com/defense/ai...lower-security-requirements-new-air-force-one
 
fightingirish said:
Boeing and the USAF have lowered security clearance requirements for workers on the VC-25B “Air Force One” program. This change addresses longstanding workforce challenges and aims to reduce delays in the program.

A few weeks ago at the Palm Beach International Airport (PBI), POTUS 47 visited a 13-year-old Boeing 747-8 BBJ, formerly owned by Qatar's royal family.

IMHO this new Air Force One will just be a normal Boeing 747-8 BBJ with less sensitive systems (smaller C4I center in the upper deck, no AAR, no EMI protection, no foldbale boarding stairs in the cargo deck etc.) as originally planned, so that current US administration can use it before the end of its second term in January 2029. ;) :rolleyes:

Source (Paywall):
https://aviationweek.com/defense/ai...lower-security-requirements-new-air-force-one
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As I've previously posted I used to work for Boeing. One of the things I saw while there is that the engineer who sat next to me spent a lot of hours coaching the VC-25B team on how to design an ADA compliant lavatory on the aircraft, but I digress...
 
First article I have seen giving the current issues on the VC-25B

* The flight handling characteristics arising from the change to the outer mold line have been computer modelled but not validated with test flights.
* Boeing are behind on wiring because of insufficient trained staff, exacerbated by them having to redo it.
* Windows; UK based GKN aerospace have struggled to meet the demanding specification for the windows but they are expected to be validated this summer. PPG Industries responsible for the Cockpit and flight deck windows however has demonstrated 'poor performance'.
* The change to the interior layout has increased noise levels on the plane, Boeing is assessing possible solutions.
* The fuselage stringers (longitudinal fuselage braces that provide stiffness and distribute loads) have cracks and are needing to be repaired.
* In addition Co-vid related delays, manpower shortages, change of interior supplier, insulation problems, wiring design delays, and anticipated lengthy future testing programme.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-wants-air-force-one-120000719.html
 
I wasn't entirely serious, Airbus Mobile never assembled anything bigger than A320s. Sierra Nevada Corporation in Dayton slipped my mind, they would be a much better candidate to help out.
 
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy5ell3gkxvo
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-n...give-trump-400m-jet-to-replace-air-force-one/
https://www.yahoo.com/news/turning-qatar-gifted-747-air-235843451.html
Regarding the VC-25B, from the last article:
The Air Force has “also relieved some of the security requirements for construction, for a production facility for a period of time,” Costello added. “It will not be a permanent relief, but that has enabled Boeing to be more efficient and productive in assembling the aircraft and … getting their mechanics to do the work, but we’re down to a few remaining issues that we have to work through, and we will hope to close out in the very near future and then we will have, I believe, a better estimate on the schedule.”
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That is likely to not end well...
 
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mkellytx said:
As I've previously posted I used to work for Boeing. One of the things I saw while there is that the engineer who sat next to me spent a lot of hours coaching the VC-25B team on how to design an ADA compliant lavatory on the aircraft, but I digress...
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Remember Clinton and his 'stealth crutches', and FDR for that matter. If the US will keep electing 80yos as President, accessibility is even more important than usual.

And getting an accessible toilet right isn't as obvious as it may seem, I've run into some real stupid errors over the years.
 
@Grey Havoc : especially that the staff re-routed to work on Qatar One will certainly be coming from those affected today on AF1... (think security clearance).
The great news for the Fana is that we will still probably see an US president fly onboard a VC-25 in the 22th Century...
 

One startling example: even if Qatar is (supposedly) a friendly country, that 747 will nonetheless have to be stripped to the bones just to check whether some wiretap sensors are not embedded here and there... Qatar or not, Trump or not, being privy to POTUS conversations is of interest for everybody and his dog.

Also the damn plane has no aerial refueling apparatus, which dooms it in case of apocalypse (nuclear, zombies, cordyceps, eurodance... whatever).
 
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The great unexpected fallout of Boeing making real money with the F-47 is... Steve Sullivan that will join the VC-25B team:

Steve Sullivan, formerly vice president of Northrop’s strike division, has been tapped to lead Boeing’s VC-25B program, wrote Jamie Burgess, Boeing’s vice president of its bombers, mobility and surveillance division, in an email sent to Boeing employees today. The message does not state Sullivan’s start date.
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https://breakingdefense.com/2025/06/boeing-hires-former-northrop-exec-to-lead-air-force-one-program/
 
WatcherZero said:
First article I have seen giving the current issues on the VC-25B

* The flight handling characteristics arising from the change to the outer mold line have been computer modelled but not validated with test flights.
* Boeing are behind on wiring because of insufficient trained staff, exacerbated by them having to redo it.
* Windows; UK based GKN aerospace have struggled to meet the demanding specification for the windows but they are expected to be validated this summer. PPG Industries responsible for the Cockpit and flight deck windows however has demonstrated 'poor performance'.
* The change to the interior layout has increased noise levels on the plane, Boeing is assessing possible solutions.
* The fuselage stringers (longitudinal fuselage braces that provide stiffness and distribute loads) have cracks and are needing to be repaired.
* In addition Co-vid related delays, manpower shortages, change of interior supplier, insulation problems, wiring design delays, and anticipated lengthy future testing programme.
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How TF are the stringers in an unused aircraft cracked?!? The only flight hours on those airframes is from Seattle to boneyard and boneyard to wherever they're being refurbished!
 
Scott Kenny said:
How TF are the stringers in an unused aircraft cracked?!? The only flight hours on those airframes is from Seattle to boneyard and boneyard to wherever they're being refurbished!
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Unless the flight-crew somehow overstressed the airframe during the delivery flight that would IMO indicate some sort of manufacturing defect.
 
The Liberian presidential charters various private aircraft, from a Cessna Caravan all the way up to a Gulfstream jet and a Dassault Falcon 900EX owned by businessmen who support his administration. The image above is a several years old hoax (pre-AI).

But nice try.
 
Titus said:
The Liberian presidential charters various private aircraft, from a Cessna Caravan all the way up to a Gulfstream jet and a Dassault Falcon 900EX owned by businessmen who support his administration. The image above is a several years old hoax (pre-AI).

But nice try.
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What did Air-Britain say about it?

Chris
 
Titus said:
The Liberian presidential charters various private aircraft, from a Cessna Caravan all the way up to a Gulfstream jet and a Dassault Falcon 900EX owned by businessmen who support his administration. The image above is a several years old hoax (pre-AI).

But nice try.
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Been away for a while. Did you tell Air-Britain that they have a fake photo in their database?

Chris
 
CJGibson said:
Will you inform Air-Britain they've been had or will I?

Boeing 707-351B, EL-SKD / 18586, Republic of Liberia : ABPic https://share.google/OsQYnz9laH5TfB0On


Chris
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seems to be a very prolific pre-AI hoaxer ! ;)

0565628.jpg

https://www.airhistory.net/photo/565628/EL-SKD
1200px-EL-SKD_Boeing_B.707-351B%28SCD%29_Republic_of_Liberia_Government_Stansted_26.5.90_%2850584828886%29.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/...Government_Stansted_26.5.90_(50584828886).jpgetc...
 

New Air Force One Delivery Now Expected In Mid-2028​

Boeing and the U.S. Air Force now expect delivery of the next Air Force One in mid-2028, a delay from the previous official schedule but earlier than the most recent expectation.

The new date comes as the service has awarded another $15.5 million for the program, bringing the total contract amount to $4.3 billion. The new contract covers an expansion of communication capabilities for both of the VC-25Bs.

“These costs are associated with integration of new communications capability that allows VC-25B to keep pace with mission requirements that have evolved since the program baseline was established,” an Air Force spokesperson told Aviation Week in a statement. “This modification can be accomplished within the current program schedule with the projected delivery date for the first VC-25B aircraft in mid-2028.”

Boeing and the Air Force had been working to set a revised schedule for the VC-25B amid extensive delays in recent years. The most recent delivery expectation for current requirements was 2029, though Boeing had told the Air Force it could hand a jet over as early as 2027.


Boeing has been under pressure from the Trump administration to improve its schedule for the VC-25B, most notably as President Donald Trump had accepted the donation of a 747-8 from the government of Qatar to be used as a separate presidential transport by the end of his term. The details of that program are classified, though it is believed that L3Harris has been awarded the work. Air Force Secretary Troy Meink said over the summer that the service has used funding from the delayed Northrop Grumman LGM-35A Sentinel program to pay for the conversion of the donated aircraft.

While details surrounding the Qatari gifted aircraft are classified, Boeing’s VC-25B is not. Delays had been growing with the program amid issues such as Boeing having trouble finding enough cleared workers, a supplier going bankrupt, structural issues on the airframes and parts shortages. Aviation Week reported in March that the Air Force allowed Boeing to reduce the security requirements on the program to speed up hiring. It is not yet clear what other changes have been made as part of the new schedule.

Meink said in September he had seen improvement on the VC-25B effort as the other aircraft had also progressed.

“What I’d say on both aircraft—and I’ve had an opportunity to work with the contracts closely over the last couple months—I think they’re on schedule,” he says.

Following the original contract award in 2018, the program had been rebaselined in 2022 with a planned initial operational capability in 2027.
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https://aviationweek.com/defense/ai...-air-force-one-delivery-now-expected-mid-2028
Why is the work around the Qatari 747 classified?
 
I don't get it. So no integrated defense or secure communications package ? There's no way the equipment the current fleet has can be installed on such short notice. Im guessing whatever secure communication suite is installed will be a much basic version that what is available now. Will there be a backup aircraft shadowing it everywhere it goes ? I'm guessing it'll be used for short domestic hops where the threat level is low. But it will be nice seeing it in its new livery.

https://aviationweek.com/defense/ai...rce-expected-limit-changes-qatari-donated-747
 
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alberchico said:
I don't get it. So no integrated defense or secure communications package ? There's no way the equipment the current fleet has can be installed on such short notice. Im guessing whatever secure communication suite is installed will be a much basic version that what is available now.
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No, it's gotta have the secure comms package, that's the primary equipment! It may not have whatever defenses are installed on the VC-25As.


alberchico said:
Will there be a backup aircraft shadowing it everywhere it goes ? I'm guessing it'll be used for short domestic hops where the threat level is low. But it will be nice seeing it in its new livery.
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There's a backup aircraft shadowing every VC25.
 
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