The U.S. President Donald Trump will receive a new presidential aircraft the so-called Air Force One already in summer 2026. This is a suspiciously short timeframe for work converting a VIP version of Boeing 747-8KB, effectively a golden flying palace that belonged to Qatari monarchs.
The U.S. Air Force reported the aircraft's commissioning timeline in an official announcement obtained by Wall Street Journal. Meanwhile, the publication notes the aircraft may become part of celebrations for America's 250th independence anniversary meaning its transfer will be timed to July 4, 2026.
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However, there's no certainty this will be a real Air Force One rather than just an aircraft painted in its colors. The U.S. Air Force itself calls this aircraft a bridge VC-25, emphasizing it's an interim solution between existing old VC-25As and future VC-25Bs, whose creation encountered significant problems and delays that were reduced to only four years overdue.
Defense Express clarifies that Air Force One's main role and task is being a command post in case of nuclear war, ensuring not only country leadership survival in maximally extreme conditions but also ability to manage military and country or what remains of them.
For this, VC-25 which can stay airborne for days has a whole range of protection systems from nuclear explosion damaging factors, aerial refueling system, unique communication and self-defense complexes that are completely classified. Ensuring such capabilities for creating VC-25B cost $4.3 billion for two aircraft.
Meanwhile, the Qatari conversion is being done under an absolutely secret contract uncharacteristic for U.S. Department of War, which openly publishes deal information.
All that's officially known: work began no later than September 2025, and an unknown sum of money was taken from the LGM-35A Sentinel intercontinental missile creation program budget, which faced rampant cost overruns.
Meanwhile, work timelines of less than a year truly don't allow talking about possibility of converting a VIP aircraft into a real command post. The intention to complete work by a specific date tied to celebrations frankly resembles ingrained Soviet traditions of timing production achievements to red-letter dates.
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