Air Force One
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- For other uses, see Air Force One (disambiguation)}}}.
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| Name | Air Force One |
| Primary function | Presidential air transport |
| Contractor | Boeing |
| Power plant | Four General Electric CF6-80C2B1 jet engines |
| Thrust | 56,700 lbf (250 kN) per engine |
| Length | 231 ft, 10 in (70.7 m) |
| Height | 63 ft, 5 in (19.3 m) |
| Wingspan | 195 ft, 8 in (59.6 m) |
| Speed | (estimated) 630 mph (Mach 0.92) |
| Ceiling | (estimated) 45,100 ft (13,700 m) |
| Maximum Takeoff Weight | (estimated) 833,000 lb (375,000 kg) |
| Range | 7,800 statute miles (6,800 nautical miles or 12 550 km) Note: it can be fueled in-flight so it has an essentially limitless range. |
| Crew | 26 |
| Total capacity | 102 |
| Introduction | December 8, 1990 (No. 28000) December 23, 1990 (No. 29000) |
| Deployment | September 6, 1990 (No. 28000) March 26, 1991 (No. 29000) |
| Inventory | 2 |
Air Force One is the air traffic control call sign of any U.S. Air Force aircraft carrying the President of the United States. Since 1990, the presidential fleet has consisted of two specifically configured, highly customized Boeing 747-200B series aircraft—tail numbers 28000 and 29000—with Air Force designation VC-25A. While these planes are only referred to as "Air Force One" while the president is on board, the term is commonly used to describe either of the two aircraft normally used and maintained by the U.S. Air Force solely for the president.
The VC-25A is capable of flying 12 600 km (7,800 miles)—roughly one-third the distance around the world—without refueling and can accommodate more than 70 passengers. Before these planes entered service, two Boeing 707-320B-type aircraft—tail numbers 26000 and 27000—had operated as Air Force One starting in 1962. The Air Force designation for these aircraft was VC-137. Since its inception, Air Force One has become a symbol of presidential power and prestige. Air Force One costs approximately 325 million dollars.
- 1 Operation
- 2 Capability and features
- 3 History
- 3.1 First of \"Flying Presidents\"
- 3.2 Boeing 707s as Air Force One
- 3.3 Transition to Boeing 747s
- 3.4 Location of past planes that served as Air Force One
- 4 Popular culture
- 5 Analogues in other countries
- 6 Sources and further reading
- 7 Air Force Two
- 8 Related content
Operation
These aircraft are maintained and operated as military operations by the Presidential Airlift Group, part of Air Mobility Command's 89th Airlift Wing, based at Andrews Air Force Base in Camp Springs, Maryland. For shorter distances, such as between Andrews AFB and the White House, the President is often flown in a U.S. Marine Corps Sikorsky VH-3D helicopter, call sign Marine One.Capability and features
The VC-25A differ from the standard Boeing 747 in size, features, and security precautions. While Air Force One has three floors, like a regular Boeing 747, its interior has been reconfigured for presidential duties. The planes' 4,000 square feet (370 m²) of interior floor space include multiple modifications. The planes' lowest levels are mostly cargo space, carrying luggage and the plane's food supply. The plane has storage and freezer capacity to provide up to 2,000 meals when fully loaded. Meals are prepared in two galleys, which together are equipped to feed about 100 people at a time.The main passenger area is on the second floor, and communications equipment and the cockpit are on the third floor. There are three entrances onboard. Writer Tom Harris notes:
- Passengers can enter through three doors. Two doors, one at the front of the plane and one at the rear, open onto the lower deck, and one door at the front of the plane opens onto the middle deck. Normally, when you see the president in the news getting on and off Air Force One with a wave, he is using the door onto the middle deck and a rolling staircase has been pulled up to the plane. Journalists normally enter through the rear door, where they immediately climb a staircase to the middle deck. Most of the press area looks something like the first class section of an ordinary jetliner, with comfortable, spaced-out seats.
In the office areas, Air Force One has access to photocopying, printing, and word processing services, as well as telecommunication systems (including 85 telephones and 19 televisions). There are also secure and non-secure voice, fax, and data communications facilities.
The planes can also be operated as a military command center in the event of an incident such as a nuclear attack. Operational modifications include aerial refueling capability and anti-aircraft missile countermeasures. The electronics on board are connected with approximately 238 miles (383 km) of wiring, twice that of a regular 747. All wiring is covered with heavy shielding for protection from an electromagnetic pulse in the event of a nuclear attack. The planes also have electronic countermeasures (ECMs) to jam enemy radar and flares to avoid heat-seeking missiles. Many of Air Force One's other capabilities are classified for security reasons.
History
Theodore Roosevelt became the first president to fly in a plane on October 11, 1910. However, prior to World War II, overseas and cross-country presidential travel was rare. Lack of wireless telecommunications and quick transportation made long-distance travel impractical, as it took up much time and isolated the president from events in Washington, D.C..
First of \"Flying Presidents\"
In the 1940s and 1950s air travel became much more convenient. The first president to fly in an aircraft while in office was Franklin D. Roosevelt, who traveled on a Boeing 314 "flying boat" aircraft to a 1943 conference in Casablanca on the progress of World War II. The threat from the German Navy's U-boats in the Atlantic made air travel the preferred method of transportation. The continuing threat from submarines established air travel as a usual means of intercontinental transportation for the president.The first aircraft officially designated for presidential flight was the C-87A Liberator Express, a reconfigured B-24 bomber. This plane was called Guess Where Two. However, after a different C-87A crashed, Guess Where Two was no longer used for Roosevelt; the Secret Service reconfigured a C-54 Skymaster as a replacement. This plane was nicknamed the Sacred Cow and included a sleeping area, radio telephone, and retractable elevator for Roosevelt's wheelchair. It carried the president to several important events, most notably the Yalta Conference. The Secret Service, not wishing to waste resources, put the C-87A plane to use by having First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt use it instead.
After Roosevelt died in spring 1945, Vice President Harry S. Truman became President. He replaced the C-54 with a modified C-118 Liftmaster, calling it the Independence, possibly in reference to President Truman's hometown of Independence, Missouri. This was the first aircraft acting as Air Force One that had a distinctive exterior—a bald eagle head painted on its nose.
The presidential call sign was established for security purposes during the administration of Dwight D. Eisenhower. The change stemmed from a 1953 incident where an Eastern Airlines commercial flight (8610) had the same call sign as a flight the President was on (Air Force 8610). The planes accidentally entered the same airspace, and after the incident the unique call sign "Air Force One" was introduced for the presidential aircraft.
Eisenhower also introduced two other propeller aircraft, the Lockheed C-121 Constellations (VC-121E) to Presidential service. These planes were named Columbine II and Columbine III by Mamie Eisenhower after the columbine, the official state flower of Colorado, her adopted home state. President Eisenhower also upgraded Air Force One's technology by adding an air-to-ground telephone and an air-to-ground teletype machine. Towards the end of Eisenhower's term, in 1958, the Air Force added three Boeing 707 jets into the fleet.
Boeing 707s as Air Force One
Under John F. Kennedy's presidency, presidential air travel officially entered the jet age. In 1962, he added a modified, long-range 707 to the fleet—Special Air Missions (SAM) 26000. He also commissioned industrial designer Raymond Loewy to create a distinctive exterior for the plane. Loewy came up with a powder blue and white design, the same colors used today; he also had the words "United States of America" put on the fuselage's side and the U.S. flag painted on the tail. Because the aircraft would be solely for the use of the president, Kennedy asked that the Presidential seal be added to both sides of the nose.
In late June 1963, Kennedy flew on SAM 26000 to Berlin, where he made his famous "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech, and to Ireland. A month earlier, it set the record for the fastest non-stop flight between Washington and Moscow.
On November 22, 1963, SAM 26000 carried President John F. Kennedy to Dallas, Texas, where early that afternoon he was assassinated. It was on the plane (while it was at Love Field) that new President Lyndon B. Johnson took the oath of office, and the plane carried Kennedy's body back to Washington. SAM 26000 flew over Arlington National Cemetery as Kennedy was being laid to rest.
SAM 26000 was also used by National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger during his secret meetings with the French to negotiate the Vietnam peace process.
SAM 26000 also carried President Richard Nixon on his historic trips to mainland China and to Russia in 1972. Later in 1972, SAM 26000 became the backup aircraft when another 707, SAM 27000, arrived.
On January 22, 1973, LBJ died. Two days later, SAM 26000 brought the former president's body on one last journey to Washington, coming from Texas for the state funeral the following day. After the funeral, SAM 26000 brought his body home to Texas for his burial, landing at Bergstrom AFB in Austin, the airfield Johnson flew into and out of when president. As the former president was laid to rest at his ranch, retired Brigadier General James Cross, pilot of SAM 26000 during Johnson's presidency, turned over the flag to his wife, Lady Bird, at her request. He also escorted her during the state funeral, which Nixon presided over, again at her request. Most of this resulted from Mrs. Johnson agreeing to the public honors in Washington, even though LBJ died in Texas, because she felt so many others from around the world wanted to join in—40,000 paid their respects when the former president lay in state. Also, thanks to SAM 26000, the final services honoring LBJ on January 25 were completed in one day, despite taking place in different parts of the country.
President Nixon dubbed the presidential airliner The Spirit of 1976, in recognition of the upcoming American bicentennial. In 1974, when Richard M. Nixon resigned the presidency and departed from Andrews AFB on Air Force One, it was arranged that the plane's call sign would switch from Air Force One to SAM designation (SAM 27000). It was President Ford who first decided that the name of the aircraft itself should be Air Force One, along with the call sign.
SAM 27000 was the primary presidential aircraft for more presidents than any other. It began service under Nixon and served Gerald R. Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, and George H.W. Bush until it was replaced by the 747's in 1990. SAM 27000 continued to serve as 'Air Force Two' (and occasionally as Air Force One) until the C-32 Boeing 757s were introduced in 1998. When Reagan flew to Berlin to make his famous "Tear down this wall!" speech, he flew on SAM 27000.
On October 6, 1981, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat was assassinated. Because of security concerns, President Reagan did not attend the funeral, nor did then-Vice President Bush. Instead, Reagan sent Secretary of State Alexander Haig and the living former presidents—Nixon, Ford, and Carter—to the funeral. Former secretary of state Henry Kissinger was also on board. All of them flew aboard SAM 26000 when traveling to the funeral.
SAM 27000 made its last flight as Air Force One August 29, 2001, carrying President George W. Bush from Andrews AFB to Waco, Texas. The final flight of SAM 27000 was on September 8, 2001 from Andrews to San Bernardino International Airport in San Bernardino, California.
Transition to Boeing 747s
Though Ronald Reagan's two terms as President saw no major changes to Air Force One, the fabrication of the current 747s began under his presidency. Most of the interior was completed in Wichita, Kansas. The first aircraft was delivered in 1990, during the administration of George H. W. Bush. The delays were to protect the aircraft from electromagnetic pulse (EMP).
One of the most dramatic episodes aboard Air Force One happened on September 11, 2001, when it flew President George W. Bush from Sarasota, Florida, where he was interrupted at an education event because of the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington. Instead of returning to Washington, the Secret Service ordered Air Force One to Barksdale AFB in Louisiana, and then to the former Strategic Air Command (now United States Strategic Command) headquarters at Offutt AFB in Nebraska, before returning to Washington. The following day, officials at the White House and the Justice Department said that the plan was enacted because there was evidence "that the White House and Air Force One were targets."
Location of past planes that served as Air Force One
Aircraft which have formerly served as Air Force One are on display in the presidential hangar of the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson AFB near Dayton, Ohio (Sacred Cow, Independence, Columbine III, SAM 26000, and other smaller Presidential aircraft), as well as the Museum of Flight in Seattle, Washington (earlier VC-137B SAM 970).The Boeing 707 that served as Air Force One during the 1980s (SAM 27000) is on display at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. The jet is part of a museum of presidential travel, located at this location. The Air Force One Pavilion was opened to the public on October 24, 2005.
A Douglas VC-118A Liftmaster used by John F. Kennedy is on display at the Pima Air & Space Museum in Tucson, Arizona.
New aircraft to fulfill the role of Air Force One may be acquired as soon as 2010, when the current 747s will be 20 years old.
Popular culture
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Air Force One is a prominent symbol of the American presidency and its power; after the White House and presidential seal, it is probably the most recognized presidential symbol.
Air Force One has often appeared in popular culture and fiction, most notably as the setting of the 1997 action movie Air Force One. In the film, Russian terrorists hijack Air Force One and hold the president and other passengers as hostages. The film was noted for its fancifully-exaggerated depiction of the plane's capabilities; for example, the real Air Force One does not officially carry an escape capsule. However, this cannot be refuted since the exact specifications of the aircraft are classified.
Air Force One was also the setting of the first episode of the TV series NCIS.
Air Force One has been featured in Robert Serling's novel The President's Plane is Missing, subsequently adapted for a TV movie.
In Rare's successful N64 game, Perfect Dark, players controlled special agent Joanna Dark as she sought to defend Air Force One from attack. The player's involvement with the plane extended to infiltrating the hanger where Air Force One was stationed, fighting an insurgency aboard the aircraft and descending to its eventual crash site in order to secure the President.
The fourth series of popular US drama series 24 featured a convoluted plot wherein terrorists sought to destroy Air Force One as a means to incapacitating the President, and steal the Nuclear Football.
Union Pacific 4141 is an EMD SD70ACe locomotive with a paint scheme based on that of Air Force One.
In fashion, the term "Air Force Ones" is used to describe a particular all-white shoe that has been sold by Nike since the 1980s. These shoes have become popular hip hop icons, and have even been the focus of a 2002 rap song by rapper Nelly aptly titled "Air Force Ones."
Analogues in other countries
Many other nations use specially designed aircraft to transport their heads of state, although no other mode of transportation for government executives is as well-known as Air Force One.
Sources and further reading
Text
- "Air Force One" The Boeing Company. [link]
- "Air Force One" United States Air Force. July 2003. [link]
- Albertazzie, Ralph, and Jerald F. Terhorst. Flying White House: The Story of Air Force One. Book Sales: 1979. ISBN 0698109309.
- Dorr, Robert F. Air Force One. Motorbooks International: 2002. ISBN 0760310556.
- Hardesty, Von. Air Force One: The Aircraft that Shaped the Modern Presidency. Northword Press: 2003. ISBN 1559718943.
- Harris, Tom. How Air Force One Works. [link]
- Walsh, Kenneth T. Air Force One: A History of the Presidents and Their Planes. Hyperion: 2003. ISBN 1401300049.
- Q&A: U.S. Presidential Jet Air Force One by David Braun National Geographic News, May 29, 2003 [link]
- Technical Order 00-105E-9, Segment 9, Chapter 7 [link]
Photographs and other multimedia
- Truman Library & Museum.[link]
- United States Air Force.[link]
- National Museum of the United States Air Force Presidential Aircraft.[link]
- Radio communication of the Air Force One monitored by the Frequency Monitor Centre in the Netherlands[link] (not English)
Air Force Two
Air Force Two is the air traffic control callsign of any Air Force aircraft (usually fixed wing) carrying the Vice President of the United States. The aircraft which serves as Air Force Two most frequently is the Boeing 757-200 which has the USAF designation C-32.
Related content
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