US President Donald Trump would rather fly in a second-hand Air Force One than accept Boeing’s production delays and price increases, he has told reporters on board one of the current US fleet, which is over three decades old.
What is Air Force One?
The US manufacturer is contracted to supply two specially updated versions of the modern Boeing 747-8 to the US administration. The modified aircraft require significant modification to turn them into Air Force One quality VC-25Bs.
Unlike the standard craft, VC-25Bs benefit from enhanced survivability features to protect the US commander-in-chief and members of government and VIPs, as well as communications equipment capable of dealing with highly-classified use cases, and bespoke air-stairs which can be deployed independently in a range of landing scenarios.
Three-year delay
Boeing undertook the responsibility for the upgraded planes in a deal made by Trump during his first term but the firm’s ongoing supply chain and manufacturing issues mean it is behind schedule and now losing money on what Trump described as a “fixed price contract”. Due originally in 2024, the supply date has been pushed back to 2027 for one plane, and 2028 for the other. What’s more, Trump has been forced to relent on a requirement for air-to-air refuelling capacity.
Saying “there’s no excuse” for Boeing’s failure to fulfill the delivery, Trump echoed what many airlines have long been complaining of and said he was “not happy” with the firm. “I’m not happy with the fact that it’s taking so long. And we may do something else. We may go and buy a plane or get a plane,” he threatened.
Fixed-price deal deepens Boeing’s money woes
Trump has made much of his deal-making prowess in the past, even titling his 1987 part-memoir and part-business-advice book “The Art of the Deal”. He emphasised in the recent press conference that he would not change the terms of the contract he imposed, despite requests to “up the price” from the manufacturer. “I make fixed price deals,” he said. “I don’t make time and materials deals.”
Whether Trump’s intransigence is a good deal for the American people is another question. The aircraft maker’s financial woes that have seen thousands of its employees across several States made redundant in the last year.
Second-hand Qatari-owned plane
Asked if he would consider buying a plane from Airbus, Trump said he would not, but he did not rule out buying a plane from another country. “I could get one that was used and convert it,” he said. “I could buy one from another country perhaps … We’re looking at all the alternatives.”
Those alternatives might include a 13-year-old Boeing 747-800 formerly owned by the Qatari royal family, which Trump is reported to have inspected at Palm Beach International Airport in mid-February.
