{"id":3366,"date":"2026-06-22T17:43:50","date_gmt":"2026-06-22T17:43:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/?p=3366"},"modified":"2026-06-22T17:43:50","modified_gmt":"2026-06-22T17:43:50","slug":"trump-unveils-new-air-force-one-a-400-million-plane-gifted-by-qatar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/?p=3366","title":{"rendered":"Trump unveils new Air Force One, a $400 million plane gifted by Qatar"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Washington \u2014 President Trump on Friday unveiled the Boeing 747-8 that will serve as the new Air Force One, providing the first look at the\u00a0$400 million luxury plane\u00a0that the U.S. accepted as a gift from the Qatari government last year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Mr. Trump descended the stairs from the hulking jet inside a hangar at Joint Base Andrews, the military post outside Washington that has served as the presidential airport for decades. He greeted Air Force officials and delivered remarks to a crowd of service members.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;There will never be one like this. This is very unique. This is considered the world&#8217;s most luxurious plane,&#8221; the president said. &#8220;When it was built, it was built at a level that will probably never be seen again.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"rounded-lg\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/lo\/mysterio\/api\/ddd9743959ef627bd05dc439758c7e404998920d9ba42478dba353161db79563\/lightyear_networkapi\/resizefill_w960;quality_80;format_webp\/https:%2F%2Fmedia.zenfs.com%2Fen%2Fcbs_news_897%2F01f2ec5274dea620532285956332c89e\" alt=\"President Trump speaks after touring the newly designated Air Force One presidential aircraft at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on Friday, June 19, 2026. \/ Credit: AP Photo\/Manuel Balce Ceneta\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" data-nimg=\"1\" \/><button class=\"group absolute bottom-0 size-full\" aria-label=\"View larger image\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\" data-rapid_p=\"7\" data-y-link-id=\"0uexo6s0xbemjx0ya7l7\" data-v9y=\"1\"><\/button><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<div>President Trump speaks after touring the newly designated Air Force One presidential aircraft at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on Friday, June 19, 2026. \/ Credit: AP Photo\/Manuel Balce Ceneta<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Mr. Trump said the hangar in which he was speaking had to be specially constructed to house the new jet, which is much larger than the previous plane. He added later that the new version will lead a massive flyover of Washington on July 4, the nation&#8217;s 250th birthday.<\/p>\n<div class=\"max-md:faux-bleed mb-4 bg-accent\/2 pb-5 md:invisible md:mb-0 md:h-0 md:overflow-hidden md:pb-0\">\n<div class=\"py-2 text-center text-xs uppercase\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex w-full flex-nowrap justify-center\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The Air Force\u00a0said in a release\u00a0that the aircraft will soon begin embarking on &#8220;commissioning flights,&#8221; its &#8220;final exam&#8221; before it can be used to transport the president.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"rounded-lg\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/lo\/mysterio\/api\/d3fbdf69a5d3acbd9de849ebe90dbe2a8935606e97ae5be0ad2094cd54c92dfc\/lightyear_networkapi\/resizefill_w960;quality_80;format_webp\/https:%2F%2Fmedia.zenfs.com%2Fen%2Fcbs_news_897%2F22939da023342c199bbadb83de1532ee\" alt=\"The new Air Force One plane, in a photo released by the Air Force. \/ Credit: Air Force\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" data-nimg=\"1\" \/><button class=\"group absolute bottom-0 size-full\" aria-label=\"View larger image\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\" data-rapid_p=\"9\" data-y-link-id=\"13lyahf1mc3uzh0ugd6t\"><\/button><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<div>The new Air Force One plane, in a photo released by the Air Force. \/ Credit: Air Force<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"rounded-lg\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/lo\/mysterio\/api\/bab4e0ac59cb477e37c0db60fafe1bf2948338ae7c817aedc2675fd8d4834ef6\/lightyear_networkapi\/resizefill_w960;quality_80;format_webp\/https:%2F%2Fmedia.zenfs.com%2Fen%2Fcbs_news_897%2F5972968c321c7ee880db15c7847f821b\" alt=\"Another view of the new Air Force One. \/ Credit: Air Force\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" data-nimg=\"1\" \/><button class=\"group absolute bottom-0 size-full\" aria-label=\"View larger image\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\" data-rapid_p=\"10\" data-y-link-id=\"1vfuwlk0pszfzj15ssja\" data-v9y=\"1\"><\/button><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<div>Another view of the new Air Force One. \/ Credit: Air Force<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;Fresh from receiving its new red, white, and blue livery and the final government modifications, the aircraft has entered service to provide critical, secure continuity for the commander in chief,&#8221; the Air Force said.<\/p>\n<div class=\"mb-4\"><\/div>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The release said the plane is &#8220;safe, secure and equipped with the most advanced technologies necessary to meet the requirements of the presidential mission.&#8221; The Air Force said it prioritized operational readiness over aesthetics, leaving the &#8220;interior layout minimally changed.&#8221; That likely means the luxury finishings, leather seats and glossy wood paneling will remain intact.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The Air Force said it leased a 747-8 last year so pilots and maintenance crews could begin training on the new model. The training mission also included the purchase of a 747-8 that had been flown by Lufthansa. Taxpayers were also on the hook for &#8220;a full three-dimensional mock-up of the interior&#8221; so officials could &#8220;begin familiarization training&#8221; ahead of the Qatari plane&#8217;s arrival, the Air Force said.<\/p>\n<div class=\"max-md:faux-bleed mb-4 bg-accent\/2 pb-5 md:invisible md:mb-0 md:h-0 md:overflow-hidden md:pb-0\">\n<div class=\"py-2 text-center text-xs uppercase\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex w-full flex-nowrap justify-center\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The plane will replace the military-grade 747-2 that has served presidents for more than 30 years. Mr. Trump arrived home from Europe on Thursday morning on the old jet, and White House staff posted farewell tributes to the aging plane on social media.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Mr. Trump has rejected criticism that accepting a gift plane from a foreign government presents a conflict of interest or a security risk. The administration has spent the last year retrofitting the Qatari jumbo jet for presidential use.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;Why should our military, and therefore our taxpayers, be forced to pay hundreds of millions of Dollars when they can get it for FREE from a country that wants to reward us for a job well done,&#8221; Mr. Trump\u00a0posted on Truth Social\u00a0last year. &#8220;Only a FOOL would not accept this gift on behalf of our Country.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The president has said the Qatari jet would be used until a new fleet of Boeing planes are delivered to the Air Force in 2028.<\/p>\n<div class=\"max-md:faux-bleed mb-4 bg-accent\/2 pb-5 md:invisible md:mb-0 md:h-0 md:overflow-hidden md:pb-0\">\n<div class=\"py-2 text-center text-xs uppercase\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex w-full flex-nowrap justify-center\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">As for the planes being taken out of the presidential rotation, an Air Force spokesperson said they &#8220;will soon join the active executive airlift fleet,&#8221; which is used by senior members of the government for official travel.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">A new Boeing 747-8 is valued at about $400 million, the\u00a0New York Times reported\u00a0last year. Retrofitting the aircraft for the presidential fleet was also expected to cost hundreds of millions of dollars. The secretary of the Air Force told a House panel last year that the price tag for retrofitting would be &#8220;probably less than $400 million.&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Washington \u2014 President Trump on Friday unveiled the Boeing 747-8 that will serve as the new Air Force<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":3367,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,4,48],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3366","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-politics","category-us"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3366","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3366"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3366\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3368,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3366\/revisions\/3368"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3367"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3366"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3366"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3366"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}