The

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

Special Air Mission provides air transportation for the president of the United States (POTUS), vice president of the United States (VPOTUS), first lady of the United States (FLOTUS), presidential Cabinet, U.S. congressional delegations (CODELs), and other high-ranking American and foreign dignitaries. The Special Air Mission is under the cognizance of the

Air Mobility Command The Air Mobility Command (AMC) is a List of Major Commands of the United States Air Force, Major Command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, U.S. Air Force. It is headquartered at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, east of St. Louis, Missouri, ...

(AMC) and executed by the

89th Airlift Wing The 89th Airlift Wing of the United States Air Force is based at Joint Base Andrews and has an operational force of over 1,000 personnel. The 89th provides global Special Air Mission (SAM) airlift, logistics, aerial transport and communications ...

(89 AW) based at

Andrews Air Force Base Andrews Air Force Base (Andrews AFB, AAFB) is the airfield portion of Joint Base Andrews, which is under the jurisdiction of the United States Air Force (USAF). In 2009, Andrews Air Force Base merged with Naval Air Facility Washington to form ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

Mission

The

provides the U.S. government's flight service with 17 aircraft dedicated to the SAM and 15 helicopters supporting federal emergency requirements. They use civilian airports almost exclusively. SAM mission areas may be divided into the following categories: * Presidential Mission: A mission directed by the White House to transport the President of the United States or members of the First Family. * Special Air Mission: A mission operated by the 89th Airlift Wing by direction of the USAF Vice Chief of Staff (CVAM). Primary passengers are the Vice President, Cabinet secretaries, and senior officials of the Executive Branch, as well as Congressional delegations and foreign senior political leaders. * Helicopter Special Mission: The mission of the 1st Helicopter Squadron (1 HS) is to provide emergency helicopter transportation for officials of

Office of the Secretary of Defense The Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) is a headquarters-level staff of the United States Department of Defense. It is the principal civilian staff element of the U.S. Secretary of Defense, and it assists the Secretary in carrying out au ...

(OSD), the

Joint Chiefs of Staff The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) is the body of the most senior uniformed leaders within the United States Department of Defense, which advises the president of the United States, the secretary of defense, the Homeland Security Council and ...

(JCS), the military Services and the civil departments of the federal government to relocation sites during a national crisis.

Special Air Mission

After a presidential inauguration resulting in a change in office, the outgoing president is provided transport on a VC-25 aircraft to their home destination. The aircraft for this flight does not use the Air Force One call sign because it is not carrying the president in office. For presidents

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

and

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

the flight was known as ''Special Air Mission 28000'', where the number represents the aircraft's tail number. For President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

, the Special Air Mission flight used the call sign ''SAM 44'', as Obama was the 44th President.

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...

's coffin was transported on a flight using the call sign Special Air Mission 41, as he was the 41st President. President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

took his last flight to

Mar-a-Lago Mar-a-Lago ( , ) is a resort and National Historic Landmark on a barrier island in Palm Beach, Florida, United States. It spans 126 rooms and built on of land. Since 1985, it has been owned by Donald Trump, the 45th and 47th president of t ...

before President

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

's inauguration, thus still under the call sign Air Force One."Trump bids farewell to Washington, hints of comeback"
''Associated Press'', 20 January 2021. Retrieved: 22 July 2024.

Special Assignment Air Mission

Special Assignment Airlift Mission (SAAM) are aircraft operated by units other than by the 89th Airlift Wing to satisfy a requirement needing special pickup or delivery at locations other than those established within the approved channel structure; or to satisfy a requirement needing special consideration because of the number of passengers, weight, or size of the cargo, urgency, or sensitivity of movement, or other special factors. These missions are designated: * PHOENIX BANNER – SAAM supporting the President of the United States (POTUS); primary aircraft employs call sign of "

Air Force One Air Force One is the official air traffic control-designated Aviation call signs, call sign for a United States Air Force aircraft carrying the president of the United States. The term is commonly used to denote U.S. Air Force aircraft modifie ...

" when POTUS is aboard. * PHOENIX SILVER – SAAM supporting the Vice President of the United States (VPOTUS); primary aircraft employs call sign of "

Air Force Two Air Force Two is the air traffic control designated call sign held by any United States Air Force aircraft carrying the vice president of the United States, but not the president. The term is often associated with the Boeing C-32, a modified ...

" when VPOTUS is aboard. * PHOENIX COPPER – SAAM supporting the United States Secret Service (USSS) when not supporting the President or Vice President, i.e., SAAM for the First Lady of the United States (FLOTUS), etc. Standby force definitions are expanded as follows when constituted in support of PHOENIX BANNER or PHOENIX SILVER missions: * BRAVO Standby. Aircraft and aircrew capable of departing 3+00 hours after notification for

C-130 The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed Corporation, Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 w ...

and

C-17 The McDonnell Douglas/Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is a large military transport aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF) between the 1980s to the early 1990s by McDonnell Douglas. The C-17 carries forward the name of two previ ...

and 3+45 hours for C-5. * ALFA Standby. Aircraft and aircrew capable of departing 1+00-hour after notification for

, and

and 1+45 hours for C-5. To support short-notice PHOENIX BANNER and PHOENIX SILVER missions, AMC maintains aircraft and augmented aircrews on standby at various locations. Specific missions may require standby C-5, C-17, or C-130 aircraft. When the cargo load requires a C-5 (i.e., airlift of

U.S. Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionary ...

helicopters in the "

Marine One Marine One is the call sign of any United States Marine Corps aircraft carrying the president of the United States. As of 2024, it is most frequently applied to a presidential transport helicopter operated by Marine Helicopter Squadron One (HMX ...

" role operated by Marine Helicopter Squadron ONE ( HMX-1)), a C-5 will be used to back up the mission. Aircraft selected to fly these missions must meet the highest standards of reliability and must not have an uncorrected history of repeat or recurring malfunctions. Missions are extensively coordinated and any delay has serious effect on mission support. PHOENIX BANNER, PHOENIX SILVER, and PHOENIX COPPER missions are of high level interest and must get special attention in accordance with established CLOSE WATCH procedures. Any problems that affect the mission will be immediately brought to the attention of the

618th Air and Space Operations Center (Tanker Airlift Control Center) Eighteenth Air Force (18 AF) is the only Numbered Air Force (NAF) in Air Mobility Command (AMC) and one of the largest NAFs in the United States Air Force. Eighteenth Air Force was activated on 28 March 1951, inactivated on 1 January 1958, and ...

for AMC controlled assets or the theater Air Mobility Operations Control Center (AMOCC) in a theater

Air and Space Operations Center An Air Operations Center (AOC) is a type of command center used by the United States Air Force (USAF). It is the senior agency of the Air Force component commander to provide command and control of air operations.Bolling Field Command, 10 March 1948 – 1 June 1948 *

Military Air Transport Service The Military Air Transport Service (MATS) is an inactive United States Department of Defense, Department of Defense Unified Command. Activated on 1 June 1948, MATS was a consolidation of the United States Navy's Naval Air Transport Service (NA ...

(MATS), 1 June 1948 – 1 January 1966 *

Military Airlift Command The Military Airlift Command (MAC) is an inactive United States Air Force major command (MAJCOM) that was headquartered at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois. Established on 1 January 1966, MAC was the primary strategic airlift organization of ...

(MAC), 1 January 1966 – 1 June 1992 *

(AMC), 1 June 1992–present

Stations

Bolling Air Force Base Bolling Air Force Base or Bolling AFB was a United States Air Force installation located in Washington, D.C. In 2010, it merged with Naval Support Facility Anacostia to form Joint Base Anacostia–Bolling. From its establishment, the base has s ...

District of Columbia Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

, 10 March 1948 – 10 July 1961 : Operations originated from

Washington National Airport Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is a public airport in Arlington County, Virginia, United States, from Washington, D.C. The closest airport to the nation's capital, it is one of two airports owned by the federal government and ope ...

, 10 July 1961–present

Components

Wings * 1100th Special Air Missions Wing, 1 July 1951 – 10 July 1961 * 1254th Air Transport Wing, 10 July 1961 – 8 January 1966 * 89th Military Airlift Wing, Special Mission, 8 January 1966 : Redesignated: 89th Military Airlift Group on 30 September 1977 : Redesignated: 89th Military Airlift Wing on 15 December 1980 : Redesignated:

on 12 July 1991 Groups * 89th Operations Group, 12 July 1991–present * Presidential Airlift Group, 1 April 2001–present * 16th Special Air Missions Group : Redesignated: 1100th Special Air Missions Group : Redesignated: 2310th Air Transport Group, 10 March 1948 – 29 November 1952 Squadrons * 1st Helicopter Squadron: 1 July 1976–present * 1st Airlift Squadron: 12 September 1977–present * 99th Airlift Squadron: 8 January 1966 – 12 September 1977; 1 October 1988–present * Presidential Airlift Squadron, 1 April 2001–present * 1st Special Air Missions Squadron : Redesignated: 1111th Special Air Mission Squadron : Redesignated: 1299th Air Transport Squadron, 10 March 1948 – 10 July 1961 * 98th Military Airlift Squadron: 8 January 1966 – 1 September 1977 * 457th Airlift Squadron: 1 April 1993 – 1 April 1995 * 1400th Military Airlift Squadron: 1 April 1975 – 15 March 1978 * 1401st Military Airlift Squadron: 1 April 1975 – 15 March 1978 * 1402d Military Airlift Squadron: 1 April 1975 – 15 March 1978

Aircraft

* C-118 Liftmaster (1966–1972) *VC-118 ''The Independence'' (1966–1974) * C-121 Constellation (1966–1968) *VC-121 (1966) * C-131 Samaritan (1966) *VC-131 (1966–1979) *

C-135 Stratolifter The Boeing C-135 Stratolifter is a transport aircraft derived from the prototype Boeing 367-80 jet airliner''Jane's all the World's Aircraft 1963–1964''. p. 183 (also the basis for the 707) in the early 1950s. It has a narrower fuselage and i ...

(1966–1968, 1975–1992) * VC-137 Stratoliner (1966–2001) * C-140 (1966–1972) *VC-140 (1966–1987) *

VC-6 SMPTE ST 2117-1, informally known as VC-6, is a video coding format. Overview The VC-6 codec is optimized for intermediate, mezzanine or contribution coding applications. Typically, these applications involve compressing finished compositions ...

(1966–1985) * U-4 (1966–1969) *VC-135 (1968–1992) * VC-9 (1975–2005) *

T-39 Sabreliner The North American Sabreliner, later sold as the Rockwell Sabreliner, is an American mid-sized business jet developed by North American Aviation. It was offered to the United States Air Force (USAF) in response to its Utility Trainer Experimen ...

(1975–1978) *

UH-1 Iroquois The Bell UH-1 Iroquois (nicknamed "Huey") is a utility military helicopter designed and produced by the American aerospace company Bell Helicopter. It is the first member of the prolific Huey family, as well as the first turbine-powered helic ...

(1976–present) * CH-3 Jolly Green Giant (1976–1988) *

C-12 Huron The Beechcraft C-12 Huron is the military designation for a series of twin-engine turboprop aircraft based on the Beechcraft Super King Air and Beechcraft 1900. C-12 variants are used by the United States Air Force, Army, Navy and Marine Corps. ...

(1976–1993) * C-20 (1983–present) * VC-25A (1991–present) * C-21 (1993–1997) * C-32A (1998–present) * C-37 (1998–present) *

C-40 Clipper The Boeing C-40 Clipper is a military version of the Boeing 737 Next Generation used to transport cargo and passengers. It is used by the United States Navy, United States Air Force, Air Force, and United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps. Th ...

(2002–present) The distinctive "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA" livery present on Special Air Mission aircraft was designed by

Raymond Loewy Raymond Loewy ( , ; November 5, 1893 – July 14, 1986) was a French-born American industrial designer who achieved fame for the magnitude of his design efforts across a variety of industries. He was recognized for this by ''Time'' magazi ...

Operations

The Special Air Mission originated with the

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

' 10th Ferrying Squadron (AAFFC) in 1941. It was redesigned as the 21st Transport Transition Training Detachment of

Air Transport Command Air Transport Command (ATC) was a United States Air Force unit that was created during World War II as the strategic airlift component of the United States Army Air Forces. It had two main missions, the first being the delivery of supplies a ...

(ATC) in 1942, and later redesignated as the 26th Transport Group. From September to December 1943, the 26th TG conducted the C-87 "Fireball" run, a weekly priority spare parts delivery flight between

Fairfield, Ohio Fairfield is a city in southern Butler County, Ohio, United States. It is a suburb located about north of Cincinnati and is situated on the east bank of the Great Miami River. The population was 44,907 as of the 2020 census. Incorporated in 1 ...

and

Agra Agra ( ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is the ...

, India. It was lastly redesignated as the 503d Army Air Force Base Unit (AAFBU) in 1944. The last unit was part of the ATC North Atlantic Division. In 1946, it is known that the 503d AAFBU was involved in the transport of personnel to Bikini Atoll as part of the Atomic Bomb Testing mission. When President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

flew to the

Casablanca Conference The Casablanca Conference (codenamed SYMBOL) or Anfa Conference was held in Casablanca, French Morocco, from January 14 to 24, 1943, to plan the Allies of World War II, Allied European strategy for the next phase of World War II. The main disc ...

in 1943 on board a commercial

Boeing 314 The Boeing 314 Clipper was an American long-range flying boat produced by Boeing from 1938 to 1941. One of the largest aircraft of its time, it had the range to cross the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. For its wing, Boeing re-used the design fro ...

Clipper Ship, he became the first U.S. president to fly while in office. Concerned about relying upon commercial airlines to transport the president, the USAAF leaders ordered the conversion of a military aircraft to accommodate the special needs of the Commander in Chief. In 1942, a modified

B-24 Liberator The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models desi ...

(designated C-87A) was prepared for the use of President Roosevelt, however it was never used by him. The First Lady,

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt ( ; October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the longest-serving First Lady of the United States, first lady of the United States, during her husband Franklin D ...

, however used the aircraft extensively in her travels around the United States and overseas to visit servicemen overseas. After experiencing difficulties with the C-87, the USAAF arranged with Douglas Aircraft to construct a new transport aircraft specifically for presidential use. Nicknamed the "Sacred Cow", this modified

C-54 Skymaster The Douglas C-54 Skymaster is a four-engined transport aircraft used by the United States Army Air Forces in World War II and the Korean War. Like the Douglas C-47 Skytrain derived from the DC-3, the C-54 Skymaster was derived from a civilian ...

(VC-54C), which included a vertical lift in the lower fuselage for the President and his wheelchair, became the first military aircraft to transport a U.S. president when President Roosevelt took it to the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

for the

Yalta Conference The Yalta Conference (), held 4–11 February 1945, was the World War II meeting of the heads of government of the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union to discuss the postwar reorganization of Germany and Europe. The three sta ...

in February 1945. President Roosevelt used the Sacred Cow only once before his death in April 1945; however, the Sacred Cow remained in presidential service during the first 27 months of the Truman Administration. On 26 July 1947, President Truman signed the National Security Act of 1947 while on board the Sacred Cow. This act established the U.S. Air Force as an independent service, making the Sacred Cow the "birthplace" of the USAF. Following the increased development of commercial air travel after World War II, Americans once again took to the air. Commercial airlines, made anemic under prohibitive wartime flying regulations and rationing of airplane fuel, were restored to vigor after the war with many World War II military aircraft being sold cheap to anyone with an idea to open an airway in the sky. The result was too many civilian aircraft and not enough airfields to support them. This meant many government civilians couldn't get to where they needed to go on time. The Special Air Mission was created to ensure military airplanes were available to transport government employees between military bases. SAM Aircraft also had priority to land at civilian airfields, although this practice became less common as years went on. The 503d Army Air Forces Base Unit was responsible for the operation of Presidential Aircraft until 27 September 1947 when the United States Air Force was created. At that time, the unit was redesignated as the 503d Air Force Base unit. The unit was nicknamed as the "Brass Hat Squadron". The 16th (later 1100th) Special Air Missions Group was created in 1948 and assigned to the newly created

. The mission of the group was to transport civilian government employees for Air Force and non-Air Force activities as directed by Air Force headquarters. The group consisted of eight squadrons, each strategically located adjacent to the headquarters of the agencies utilizing transportation furnished by the squadrons. This included the transportation of the president of the United States, the vice president, members of the Cabinet, members of Congress, and other high-ranking American and foreign dignitaries. In 1947, USAAF officials ordered the 29th production DC-6 to be modified as a replacement for the aging VC-54C Sacred Cow presidential aircraft. On 4 July 1947, a VC-118, a military version of the

Douglas DC-6 The Douglas DC-6 is a piston-powered airliner and cargo aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company from 1946 to 1958. Originally intended as a military transport near the end of World War II, Douglas reworked it after the war to compete ...

commercial airliner, came into use. It differed from the standard DC-6 configuration in that the aft fuselage was converted into a stateroom; the main cabin seated 24 passengers or could be made up into 12 "sleeper" berths. The VC-118 was nicknamed "Independence" for the President

Harry Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. As the 34th vice president in 1945, he assumed the presidency upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt that year. Subsequen ...

's hometown in

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

. In September 1947, this USAAF aircraft became a USAF aircraft with the establishment of the U.S. Air Force as an independent service. Probably the plane's most historic flight occurred when it carried President Truman to

Wake Island Wake Island (), also known as Wake Atoll, is a coral atoll in the Micronesia subregion of the Pacific Ocean. The atoll is composed of three islets – Wake, Wilkes, and Peale Islands – surrounding a lagoon encircled by a coral reef. The neare ...

in October 1950 to discuss the Korean situation with

General of the Army Army general or General of the army is the highest ranked general officer in many countries that use the French Revolutionary System. Army general is normally the highest rank used in peacetime. In countries that adopt the general officer fou ...

Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American general who served as a top commander during World War II and the Korean War, achieving the rank of General of the Army (United States), General of the Army. He served with dis ...

. In May 1953, after nearly six years of White House service, the Independence was retired as a presidential aircraft and subsequently served several Air Force organizations as a VIP transport. President

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

traveled aboard the "Columbine II" and "Columbine III" from 1953 to 1961. This was a modified C-121 Constellation commercial transport, designated as a VC-121E, and was President Eisenhower's personal airplane between 1954 and 1961. Mrs. Eisenhower christened it Columbine III in honor of the official flower of

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

, her adopted home state, in ceremonies on 24 November 1954. Columbine III served as the presidential aircraft until President Eisenhower left office in January 1961. It remained in service transporting government officials and visiting foreign dignitaries throughout the world until 1966. A 1953 incident where Eisenhower's aircraft was "Air Force 8610" and an Eastern Airlines plane was "Eastern 8610" created the need to devise a unique call sign. The call sign "Air Force One" was classified during the 1950s to identify not only the president's plane, but when he was aboard. In September 1961, it became popularly known when it identified President John F. Kennedy flying aboard his C-118. In 1961, the 1254th Air Transport Wing was moved from

, Maryland, where it was later disestablished in January 1966. In its place, the 89th MAW Special Missions was activated and assigned to Andrews Air Force Base until the wing became a group on 30 September 1977. In 1962, a VC-137C specifically purchased for use as Air Force One, entered into service with the tail number 26000. It is perhaps the most widely known and most historically significant presidential aircraft. SAM 26000 flew President

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...

West Berlin West Berlin ( or , ) was a political enclave which comprised the western part of Berlin from 1948 until 1990, during the Cold War. Although West Berlin lacked any sovereignty and was under military occupation until German reunification in 1 ...

in 1963, where he declared to West Berliners, "

Ich bin ein Berliner "" (; "I am a Berliner") is a speech by United States President John F. Kennedy given on June 26, 1963, in West Berlin. It is one of the best-known speeches of the Cold War and among the most famous anti-communist speeches. Twenty-two months ...

," assuring them of continuing United States support in the face of Communist threats and the construction of the

Berlin Wall The Berlin Wall (, ) was a guarded concrete Separation barrier, barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and the East Germany, German Democratic Republic (GDR; East Germany). Construction of the B ...

. Kennedy also flew aboard SAM 26000 to

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, Texas, where he was

assassinated Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

on 22 November 1963—and it was on this airplane that Vice President

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served a ...

was sworn in as the new president. SAM 26000 then carried John F. Kennedy's body and President Johnson back to Washington, D.C. Johnson also used 26000 to visit U.S. troops in Vietnam during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. Beginning in 1970

Henry Kissinger Henry Alfred Kissinger (May 27, 1923 – November 29, 2023) was an American diplomat and political scientist who served as the 56th United States secretary of state from 1973 to 1977 and the 7th National Security Advisor (United States), natio ...

used the aircraft for 13 trips to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France, for secret meetings with the

North Vietnam North Vietnam, officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV; ; VNDCCH), was a country in Southeast Asia from 1945 to 1976, with sovereignty fully recognized in 1954 Geneva Conference, 1954. A member of the communist Eastern Bloc, it o ...

ese. In February 1972 President Nixon flew aboard SAM 26000 on his historic " Journey for Peace" to the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

(the first visit by an American president to China). In May 1972 SAM 26000 carried Nixon to the

. SAM 26000 was augmented in December 1972 by another VC-137, Special Air Mission 27000, with SAM 26000 retained as an alternate Air Force One aircraft until it was finally retired in 1998. Richard Nixon was the first president to use SAM 27000, and the newer VC-137 served every president until it was replaced by the two

VC-25 The Boeing VC-25 is a military version of the Boeing 747 airliner, modified for presidential transport and commonly operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) as ''Air Force One'', the call sign of any U.S. Air Force aircraft carrying the pr ...

aircraft (SAM 28000 and 29000) in 1990. However, SAM 27000 continued to remain in service as an Air Force Two and alternate Air Force One aircraft until retired in 2001. In October 1981 the aircraft flew presidents Nixon, Ford and Carter, and former Secretary of State Kissinger to the funeral of the slain Egyptian President

Anwar Sadat Muhammad Anwar es-Sadat (25 December 1918 – 6 October 1981) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the third president of Egypt, from 15 October 1970 until Assassination of Anwar Sadat, his assassination by fundame ...

. In March 1983, Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

of the United Kingdom flew on SAM 26000 during her trip to the United States when she visited the West Coast. At a nationally televised event in May 1998, the USAF retired SAM 26000. This aircraft provided 36 years of service and accumulated more than 13,000 flying hours. SAM 27000 was similarly retired in August 2001. The current Special Air Mission for presidential travel used a modified Boeing 747-200B (VC-25A). The two aircraft currently in U.S. service are highly modified, to include EMP hardening of all communications and avionics systems and an

aerial refueling Aerial refueling ( en-us), or aerial refuelling ( en-gb), also referred to as air refueling, in-flight refueling (IFR), air-to-air refueling (AAR), and tanking, is the process of transferring aviation fuel from one aircraft (the tanker) to an ...

capability allowing the ability to refuel from USAF

KC-135 Stratotanker The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an American military aerial refueling tanker aircraft that was developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, alongside the Boeing 707 airliner. It has a narrower fuselage and is shorter than the 707. Boeing gave ...

KC-10 Extender The McDonnell Douglas KC-10 Extender is an American tanker and cargo aircraft that was operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) from 1981 to 2024. A military version of the three-engine DC-10 airliner, the KC-10 was developed from the A ...

, and the beleaguered future

KC-46 Pegasus The Boeing KC-46 Pegasus is an American military aerial refueling and strategic military transport aircraft developed by Boeing from its 767 jet airliner. In February 2011, the tanker was selected by the United States Air Force (USAF) as the ...

aircraft. The VC-25s carry tail numbers 28000 and 29000. Although the Air Force One designation technically applies to the planes only while the President is aboard, the term is commonly applied to the VC-25s more generally. They often operate in conjunction with

, a Marine Corps helicopter, typically a VH-3D Sea King, operated by Marine Helicopter Squadron ONE ( HMX-1), which ferries the President to airports or other locations in circumstances where a vehicle motorcade would be inappropriate. In the future, the VC-25A's will be replaced by the Boeing 747-8 derived VC-25B, and the VH-3D Sea King and VH-60N “White Hawk” helicopters will be replaced by a fleet of 23

Sikorsky S-92 The Sikorsky S-92 is an American twin-engine medium-lift helicopter built by Sikorsky Aircraft for the civil and military helicopter markets. The S-92 was developed from the Sikorsky S-70 helicopter and has similar parts such as flight control ...

based VH-92A helicopters.

References

* Mueller, Robert (1989). Active Air Force Bases Within the United States of America on 17 September 1982. USAF Reference Series, Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. * Ravenstein, Charles A. (1984). Air Force Combat Wings Lineage and Honors Histories 1947–1977. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. . * History of the Special Air Mission units :The Washington National Airport Staff and the 503rd Army Air Forces Base Unit (503 AAFB) : 1943–1947. Andrews AFB, Md. : Office of History, 89th Military Airlift Wing, 1990
FAS Special Air Mission

National Museum of the Air Force Presidential Gallery

89th Operations Group, Fact Sheet

Presidential Airlift Group Fact Sheet

11 October 1950: 100,000 miles to Bolling
{{US Air Force navbox Military units and formations established in 1948 United States Air Force