Reuters
Washington: The US Air Force is rolling out a new paint scheme across its executive fleet, including the next-generation Air Force One aircraft, in a colour palette of red, white, gold and dark blue, the service has announced.
The new design marks a departure from the iconic white and robin’s egg blue livery dating to president John F. Kennedy’s administration, and revives elements of President Donald Trump’s proposed red, white and blue scheme, which was scrapped in 2022 after the Air Force found that darker colours could cause overheating issues.
At least two government aircraft have already been spotted sporting the new colours, which resemble renderings unveiled by Trump in 2019 during his first term.
On Wednesday (Australian time), defence news website The War Zone published images of one of the Air Force’s four Boeing 757 variants, sometimes designated as “Air Force Two”, at an airport in Texas. And late last year, a “mystery” Boeing 737 apparently in use by the Department of Homeland Security was seen in the new livery.
The redesign will eventually be applied to the VC-25B – the military designation for the new Boeing 747-8i aircraft that will serve as Air Force One.
The Air Force did not provide details on how the new design addresses the thermal concerns that doomed Trump’s previous paint proposal, which the Biden administration rejected after determining it “could drive additional engineering, time and cost”.
The Air Force One program has faced delays and cost overruns since Boeing agreed to a $US3.9 billion ($5.5 billion) fixed-price contract in 2018 to deliver two modified 747-8s to replace the current fleet. The replacement aircraft are not expected to be delivered until at least 2028.
In December, the Air Force purchased two used 747-8 aircraft from German airline Lufthansa for $US400 million to establish crew training and spare parts support ahead of the transition from the ageing 747-200-derived planes.
Lufthansa is one of the last remaining airlines to operate the Boeing 747 on passenger services. The iconic jumbo jet was retired by Qantas in 2020.
The age of the existing Air Force One fleet, which first flew more than 35 years ago, and the delays in its replacement have long been major concerns of Trump.
“We’re the United States of America,” he said last May. “I believe that we should have the most impressive plane.”
But the president’s decision the same month to accept the gift from Qatar of a luxury 747-8 to serve as a stop-gap replacement triggered a backlash from Democrats, who said it raised serious legal and ethical concerns.
“Nothing says ‘America First’ like Air Force One, brought to you by Qatar,” Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer wrote on X. “It’s not just bribery, it’s premium foreign influence with extra legroom.”
The Boeing 747 was in production for more than 50 years, and the final aircraft rolled out of Boeing’s factory in 2022. Over 1500 were built, and about 400 are still flying, mostly as cargo freighters.
Reuters
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