The US has started preparing the Qatari jet to be used as Air Force One, with the date set for its first flight.
The $400m Boeing aircraft was donated by Qatar as an ‘unconditional’ gift back in May.
Boeing had originally been contracted to deliver two converted 747s last year, using aged Air Force One jets.
But with that project behind schedule, the US government is moving forward with the Qatari plane. And takeoff is sooner than you’d expect.
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The Qatari jet is being prepped to be used as Air Force One – and the first flight be sooner than you think
Air Force One has been serving the US government since the 1950s, when President Dwight Eisenhower was flying around on Columbine II.
It’s gone through a lot of iterations in the years since.
The two 747-200 planes currently serving the US President have been in operation since 1990, but are due for an upgrade.
Boeing was tasked with building two new Air Force One planes, but it hasn’t delivered on these planes as yet.
President Trump said he wasn’t happy with the manufacturer back in February, and suggested the administration could ‘buy a plane or get a plane’.
That’s where the plane from the Qatari Royal Family comes into play – even though Boeing is still ‘laser focused’ on building the original planes.
The US government accepted the gift from Qatar, with plans to have it converted to be fit for purpose.
At an estimated cost of $1,000,000,000, it was no cheap conversion.
But surprisingly, the Qatari jet could be up and flying within a year.
When asked when he expects to fly on the new Air Force One, President Trump had this to say.
“They say February, maybe. Much sooner than the others,” he said, Fox Business reported.
“The [Ones being made by Boeing] are being built. But we’ll get this one a year-and-a-half, two years earlier.”
What work will be going into this plane?
The two Air Force One planes still in operation have been in service since 1990.
They’ve had plenty of upgrades over the years, but still need to be replaced.
By contrast, Qatar’s gifted Boeing 747 was built in 2012, and uses modern engines and fuel-efficiency features.
The current Air Force One fleet has a capacity of around 70 people and a travel range of 7,800 miles on a full tank.
The Qatari plane can travel 8,000 miles and has been likened to a flying hotel.
Work still needs to be done on the plane before it can be used by the government.
Modifications include installation of advanced security systems, the ability to refuel mid-flight, and protection against electromagnetic pulses from nuclear blasts.
There’s been some dispute over the cost of the retrofit, with the US government estimating it’d be in the hundreds of millions, whilst the Democrat Party estimated it would be $1 billion.
Either way, it won’t come cheap.
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