Trump embarks on $400 million Qatari-gifted Air Force One for inaugural flight
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Trump embarks on $400 million Qatari-gifted Air Force One for inaugural flight")
United States President Donald Trump embarking on Qatari-gifted Air Force One Photograph: (AFP)
The retrofitted Boeing gifted to US by Qatar has come in to replace the ageing Boeing jets that have served as Air Force One for the last 36 years.
United States President Donald Trump on Wednesday (July 1) took his maiden voyage on a new Air Force One, gifted by Qatar. The retrofitted Boeing 747-800 worth $400 million is painted in Trump's preferred color scheme: a navy-blue belly with red and gold stripes.
before his maiden flight on the new luxurious Air Force One Trump said, "I went to Boeing. I said, "Who has the best one?" They said, "Qatar.... Frankly, we couldn't build a plane like this because we wouldn't be willing to spend the kind of money necessary."
The retrofitted Boeing gifted to US by Qatar has come in to replace the ageing Boeing jets that have served as Air Force One for the last 36 years. Also there is a huge delay in the delivery of two new aircrafts ordered by US.
Though very high-tech and equipped with the state of the art facilities, the new plane lacks some of the security measures. According to the Associated Press the plane misses some of the missile detection and countermeasure systems used by the outgoing Cold War-era jets.
However the Air Force said the conversion of the jet was done “without accepting any risk regarding security, safety, or secure communications.”
Less than $400 million was spent on security upgrades and cabin layout, said officials of the Air Force, reported AFP.
Qatar first offered the aircraft in May 2025, and US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth accepted it later that month in accordance with all federal rules and regulations, according to Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell. Parnell added that the Defense Department will work to ensure proper security measures and functional mission requirements are considered for an aircraft used to transport the president of the United States.
Trump has said he plans to use the new plane next week when he travels to attend the NATO summit in Turkey.
Generally, reporters are not allowed to take interior pictures of the Air Force One until Trump is present. But Trump administration staffers shared images of the plane's interior on social media platforms.
Trump went to North Dakota on the new plane to see the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library ahead of its opening on the nation's 250th anniversary.
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