Boeing Lands $600 Million Contract for New Air Force One Jets

In a $600 million deal that could possibly impact Boeing workers in Oklahoma, the aircraft company has been awarded an Air Force contract to begin designing a new Air Force One presidential aircraft.

Whether workers at Boeing’s facilities at Tinker Air Force base will be directly involved remains to be seen. But the contract calls for two new 747-8s planes to replace the two aging VC-25A presidential support planes. The VC-25 planes which are 747-200s have been in use since President George H.W. Bush was in office in 1990.

The latest deal is part two of an agreement with Boeing. The Air Force already okayed the purchase of the plane and the latest contract is for design plans. A third phase or contract is expected next summer where work will be ironed out on manufacturing, test and delivery.

It’s expected the jets will be in use by 2024. As for the current Air Force Ones, they had been planned to be sold to a now-defunct Russian airline. Transaero ordered them in 2013 but the airline went belly up two years later and never took ownership of the planes.

 

The jetliners are still parked along with other retired and surplus planes in the “boneyard” in the Mojave Desert. The Air Force has carried out tests on the jets and is still looking for a buyer.