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What is wrong with the current Air Force One?
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Anonymous
| I know it is old and needs to be replaced in due course. But is something immediately wrong with those two planes? But is the plane dangerous or likely to fail in some way? Why can't we just wait for when Boeing is done? Admittedly they are late, but is this just about Trump wanting to travel in style for ego's sake, or is there a legitimate reason to take a Qatari interim Air Force One? |
Anonymous
|
As a point of definition: "Air Force One" is the call sign for any fixed-wing aircraft that is carrying the president of the US. It could be a single-engine plane or an A380, or anything in between.
The question is probably a reference to the two VC-25s that are commonly used to transport the US president. And, no, there is nothing wrong with them. They are low-time/low-cycles airframes. The reason to replace them is that the 747-200 is effectively obsolete for commercial purposes, and some parts are becoming scarce. This is not yet a problem, but will be in the future. There is no technical reason why either one needs to be replaced in the next few years, and there are many reasons why replacing them with a one-off that is in need of heavy modification to serve in that role is a bad idea. In some ways, the current planes are better for their use case than the ones that will replace them. The current ones use mechanical dials and switches, which are less susceptible to EMPs. They are also set up for in-flight refueling, which the replacements will not have as an option. |
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