Washington: President Joe Biden is sticking with a blue and white color scheme for the exterior of the replacement Air Force An aircraft, the first of which is expected to be delivered in four years. The Air Force said late Friday that the light blue paint on the new model of the modified 747 carrying the president will be slightly darker and more modern than the robin’s egg blue on the versions of the plane currently in use.
Boeing is modifying two of its 747-800 aircraft that will use the Air Force One call sign when the president is aboard. They will replace the existing fleet of two older Boeing 747-200 aircraft currently used by the President.
The choice of the aircraft’s exterior colors follows an earlier decision by the administration to scrap the red-white-and-blue design favored by Biden’s immediate predecessor Donald Trump. An Air Force review suggested that the dark color would increase costs and delay delivery of the new jumbo jets.
In 2018, Trump directed that the new jets abandon the iconic Kennedy-era blue and white design for a white and navy color scheme. The upper half of the aircraft would be white and the lower half including the belly would be dark blue. A dark red stripe would have run from the cockpit to the tail. The color was almost identical to the exterior of Trump’s private jet.
Formally known as the VC-25B, the new aircraft will replace the current fleet, known as the VC-25A, which the Air Force said suffered from reduced capability, increased maintenance costs and ” obsolescence of parts”. The Air Force said modifications to the successor aircraft would include electrical power upgrades, a medical facility and a self-defense system.
The Air Force said delivery of the first of the new airplanes is estimated for 2027, followed by the second in 2028.
The current generation of aircraft first carried President George HW Bush, who served from 1989–1993.
Boeing is modifying two of its 747-800 aircraft that will use the Air Force One call sign when the president is aboard. They will replace the existing fleet of two older Boeing 747-200 aircraft currently used by the President.
The choice of the aircraft’s exterior colors follows an earlier decision by the administration to scrap the red-white-and-blue design favored by Biden’s immediate predecessor Donald Trump. An Air Force review suggested that the dark color would increase costs and delay delivery of the new jumbo jets.
In 2018, Trump directed that the new jets abandon the iconic Kennedy-era blue and white design for a white and navy color scheme. The upper half of the aircraft would be white and the lower half including the belly would be dark blue. A dark red stripe would have run from the cockpit to the tail. The color was almost identical to the exterior of Trump’s private jet.
Formally known as the VC-25B, the new aircraft will replace the current fleet, known as the VC-25A, which the Air Force said suffered from reduced capability, increased maintenance costs and ” obsolescence of parts”. The Air Force said modifications to the successor aircraft would include electrical power upgrades, a medical facility and a self-defense system.
The Air Force said delivery of the first of the new airplanes is estimated for 2027, followed by the second in 2028.
The current generation of aircraft first carried President George HW Bush, who served from 1989–1993.
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