The Boeing 747 that has carried every U.S. president since George H.W. Bush is quietly winding down its service, with White House staff posting social media farewells this week after tail number 29000 returned from Trump’s Europe trip — possibly for the last time in the primary Air Force One role.
The VC-25A, as the Air Force designates it, has been the face of American presidential air power since 1990. Its replacement is already in the final stretch of preparation: a donated Boeing 747-800 from the government of Qatar, stripped to bare metal and rebuilt by U.S. spy and security agencies, has completed flight testing and is on schedule to roll out this summer in a new red, white, gold, and dark blue livery chosen by President Trump.
The Qatar jet — which drew over a year of bipartisan scrutiny on Capitol Hill over security concerns and the optics of accepting a foreign government’s aircraft — cost less than $400 million to retrofit, according to Air Force Secretary Troy Meink. Two additional 747-800s being modified by Boeing won’t be ready for roughly two more years.
The two original VC-25As aren’t being retired outright. The Air Force says they’ll remain part of the fleet, though their long-term role is unclear.
Why It Matters: The 747 that defined presidential air travel for 35 years is passing the torch — and the plane replacing it has one of the more unusual origin stories in military aviation history.
Source: CNN
