Air Force 1
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Air Force One is the official
air traffic control Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled air ...
-designated
call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally as ...
for a
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 ...
aircraft carrying the
president of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
. The term is commonly used to denote U.S. Air Force aircraft modified and used to transport the president, and as a
metonym Metonymy () is a figure of speech in which a concept is referred to by the name of something associated with that thing or concept. For example, the word "wikt:suit, suit" may refer to a person from groups commonly wearing business attire, such ...
for the primary presidential aircraft,
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 ...
, although it can be used to refer to any Air Force aircraft the president travels on. The idea of designating specific
military aircraft A military aircraft is any Fixed-wing aircraft, fixed-wing or rotorcraft, rotary-wing aircraft that is operated by a legal or insurrectionary military of any type. Some military aircraft engage directly in aerial warfare, while others take on su ...
to transport the president arose during
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 ...
when military advisors in the
War Department War Department may refer to: * War Department (United Kingdom) * United States Department of War The United States Department of War, also called the War Department (and occasionally War Office in the early years), was the United States Cabinet ...
were concerned about the risk of using commercial airlines for presidential travel. In 1944, a
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 ...
was converted for use as the first purpose-built presidential aircraft. Dubbed the ''Sacred Cow'' and operated by the
Army Air Force 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 ...
, it carried 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 ...
to 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 and was used for another two years by President
Harry S. 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 ...
. The "Air Force One"
call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally as ...
was created in 1954, after a
Lockheed Constellation The Lockheed Constellation ("Connie") is a propeller-driven, four-engined airliner built by Lockheed Corporation starting in 1943. The Constellation series was the first civil airliner family to enter widespread use equipped with a pressurized cab ...
carrying 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 ...
entered the same airspace as a commercial airline flight using the same
flight number In the aviation industry, a flight number or flight designator is a code for an airline service consisting of two-character airline designator and a 1 to 4 digit number. For example, QF9 is a Qantas Airways service from Perth, Australia to Londo ...
. Since the introduction of ''
SAM 26000 ''SAM 26000'' is the first of two Boeing VC-137C aircraft specifically configured and maintained for use by the President of the United States. It used the callsign ''Air Force One'' when the president was on board, otherwise ''SAM 26000'' (sp ...
'' in 1962, the primary presidential aircraft has carried the distinctive
livery A livery is an identifying design, such as a uniform, ornament, symbol, or insignia that designates ownership or affiliation, often found on an individual or vehicle. Livery often includes elements of the heraldry relating to the individual or ...
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 ...
. Other aircraft designated as Air Force One have included another Lockheed Constellation, ''Columbine III''; three
Boeing 707 The Boeing 707 is an early American long-range Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliner, the first jetliner developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, the initial first flew on Decembe ...
s, introduced in the 1960s and 1970s; and the current Boeing VC-25As. Since 1990, the presidential fleet has consisted of two highly customized
Boeing 747-200B The Boeing 747 is a long-range wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2023. After the introduction of the 707 in October 1958, Pan Am wanted a jet times its size, t ...
(VC-25A) aircraft. The USAF has ordered two
Boeing 747-8 The Boeing 747-8 is the final series of the large, long-range wide-body airliners in the Boeing 747 family from Boeing Commercial Airplanes. It is the largest model variant of the 747 and Boeing's largest aircraft overall. Following the intro ...
s to serve as the next presidential aircraft, designated VC-25Bs and expected to enter service no earlier than 2026. From time to time, presidents have invited other world leaders to travel with them on Air Force One. In 1973, President Nixon invited
Soviet general secretary The General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. was the leader of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). From 1924 until the country's dissolution in 1991, the officeholder was the recognize ...
Leonid Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev (19 December 190610 November 1982) was a Soviet politician who served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1964 until Death and state funeral of Leonid Brezhnev, his death in 1982 as w ...
to fly with him to California from Washington, D.C. In 1983, President Reagan and
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. ...
toured the
U.S. West Coast The West Coast of the United States, also known as the Pacific Coast and the Western Seaboard, is the coastline along which the Western United States meets the North Pacific Ocean. The term typically refers to the contiguous U.S. states of Cali ...
aboard the aircraft.


History


20th century

On 11 October 1910,
Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...
became the first US president to fly in an aircraft, an early
Wright Flyer The ''Wright Flyer'' (also known as the ''Kitty Hawk'', ''Flyer'' I or the 1903 ''Flyer'') made the first sustained flight by a manned heavier-than-air powered and controlled aircraft on December 17, 1903. Invented and flown by brothers Wrigh ...
from Kinloch Field near
St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...
,
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 ...
. He was no longer in office at the time, having been succeeded by
William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) served as the 27th president of the United States from 1909 to 1913 and the tenth chief justice of the United States from 1921 to 1930. He is the only person to have held both offices. ...
. The record-making occasion was a brief overflight of the crowd at a county fair but was nonetheless the beginning of presidential air travel.


First presidential aircraft

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 ...
was the first president to fly in an aircraft while in office. The first aircraft obtained specifically for presidential travel was a
Douglas Dolphin The Douglas Dolphin is an American amphibious flying boat. While only 58 were built, they served a wide variety of roles including private air yacht, airliner, military transport, and search and rescue. Design and development The Dolphin orig ...
amphibian Amphibians are ectothermic, anamniote, anamniotic, tetrapod, four-limbed vertebrate animals that constitute the class (biology), class Amphibia. In its broadest sense, it is a paraphyletic group encompassing all Tetrapod, tetrapods, but excl ...
modified with luxury upholstery for four passengers and a small separate sleeping compartment. Designated RD-2 by the US Navy, it was delivered in 1933 and based at the naval base at Anacostia in Washington, D.C. The aircraft remained in service as a presidential transport from 1939. During World War II, German submarines operating in the Atlantic Ocean made air travel the preferred method of VIP transatlantic transportation. In 1943, Roosevelt traveled 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 Morocco on the ''
Dixie Clipper The ''Dixie Clipper'' (civil registration NC18605) was an American Boeing 314 Clipper flying boat, best known for in June 1939 beginning the first scheduled air service between America and Europe, the first American aircraft to carry passengers ...
'', a Pan Am-crewed
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 ...
flying boat A flying boat is a type of seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a floatplane in having a fuselage that is purpose-designed for flotation, while floatplanes rely on fuselage-mounted floats for buoyancy. Though ...
, on a flight that covered 5,500 miles (8,890 km) in three legs. Concerned about relying upon commercial airlines to transport the president, officials of the
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 ...
, the predecessor of the US Air Force, ordered the conversion of a military aircraft to accommodate the special needs of the commander-in-chief."Factsheet: Douglas VC-54C Sacred Cow"
''National Museum of the United States Air Force''. Retrieved: 19 October 2009.
In 1943, a C-87A transport, number 41-24159, was modified to carry President Franklin D. Roosevelt on international trips. But after a review of the C-87's controversial safety record, the Secret Service flatly refused to approve the aircraft for presidential carriage. The C-87, a derivative of the
Consolidated 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 ...
bomber, also carried more militaristic associations than aircraft designed for transport. The aircraft, named ''Guess Where II'', was used to transport senior members of the Roosevelt administration on various trips. In March 1944, it flew
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 ...
on a goodwill tour of several Latin American countries. The C-87 was scrapped in 1945. The Secret Service subsequently reconfigured a Douglas
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 ...
for presidential transport duty. The VC-54C aircraft, nicknamed the ''Sacred Cow'', included a sleeping area,
radiotelephone A radiotelephone (or radiophone), abbreviated RT, is a radio communication system for conducting a conversation; radiotelephony means telephony by radio. It is in contrast to ''radiotelegraphy'', which is radio transmission of telegrams (messag ...
, and retractable battery-powered
elevator An elevator (American English) or lift (Commonwealth English) is a machine that vertically transports people or freight between levels. They are typically powered by electric motors that drive traction cables and counterweight systems suc ...
to lift Roosevelt in his wheelchair. The VC-54C flew President Roosevelt only once, to 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. The
National Security Act of 1947 The National Security Act of 1947 (Act of Congress, Pub.L.]80-253 61 United States Statutes at Large, Stat.]495 enacted July 26, 1947) was a law enacting major restructuring of the Federal government of the United States, United States governmen ...
, the legislation that created the US Air Force, was signed by President
Harry S. 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 ...
aboard the VC-54C. He replaced the VC-54C in 1947 with a modified Douglas DC-6, C-118 Liftmaster, calling it the ''Independence'' after his Missouri hometown. It was given a distinctive exterior, as its nose was painted like the head of a
bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche ...
. The plane included a stateroom in the aft fuselage and a main cabin that could seat 24 passengers or could be made up into 12 sleeper berths. It is now housed at the
National Museum of the United States Air Force The National Museum of the United States Air Force (formerly the United States Air Force Museum) is the official museum of the United States Air Force located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, northeast of Dayton, Ohio. The NMUSAF is ...
in
Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...
. Eisenhower introduced four propeller-driven aircraft to presidential service. This group included two Lockheed C-121 Constellations: aircraft ''
Columbine II ''Columbine II'' is a Lockheed C-121 Constellation, Lockheed VC-121A-LO Constellation (Air Force Serial Number 48-8610, Lockheed Model 749–79–36); the aircraft that was to become the first plane to use the Air Force One callsign and the only ...
'' (VC-121A 48-610)Villarreal, Phil
"1st Air Force One fades in Marana"
''
Arizona Daily Star The ''Arizona Daily Star'' is an American daily newspaper based in Tucson, Arizona, and owned by Lee Enterprises. It serves Tucson and surrounding districts of Southern Arizona in the United States. History 1877–1925 L. C. Hughes was the ...
'', 11 July 2013. Retrieved: 16 July 2013.
Petersen, Ralph M
"N9463 c/n 2602"
''Lockheed Constellation Survivors'', Retrieved: 16 July 2013.
and ''Columbine III'' (VC-121E 53-7885).Petersen, Ralph M

''Lockheed Constellation Survivors''. Retrieved: 16 July 2013.
They were named by First Lady
Mamie Eisenhower Mary Geneva "Mamie" Eisenhower (; November 14, 1896 – November 1, 1979) was First Lady of the United States from 1953 to 1961 as the wife of President Dwight D. Eisenhower. Born in Boone, Iowa, she was raised in a wealthy household in Colo ...
for the
columbine Columbine may refer to: Places * Columbine, Colorado, a census-designate place in Jefferson and Arapahoe counties in Colorado, United States ** Columbine High School, a high school in Columbine, Colorado, United States *** Columbine Memorial, a ...
, official state flower of her adopted home state 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 ...
. Two Aero Commanders were also added to the fleet. ''
Columbine II ''Columbine II'' is a Lockheed C-121 Constellation, Lockheed VC-121A-LO Constellation (Air Force Serial Number 48-8610, Lockheed Model 749–79–36); the aircraft that was to become the first plane to use the Air Force One callsign and the only ...
'' is the first plane to bear the
call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally as ...
Air Force One, it was Lockheed Constellation configured for VIP travel and replaced an earlier Constellation called ''Columbine''. This designation for the US Air Force aircraft carrying the incumbent president was established after a 1954 incident in which a commercial flight,
Eastern Air Lines Eastern Air Lines (also colloquially known as Eastern) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1926 to 1991. Before its dissolution, it was headquartered at Miami International Airport in an unincorporated area of Miami-Dade ...
8610, crossed paths with Air Force 8610, which was carrying President Eisenhower. Initially used informally, the designation became official in 1962.


Boeing 707s and entry to jet age

Toward the end of Eisenhower's second term, Secretary of State
John Foster Dulles John Foster Dulles (February 25, 1888 – May 24, 1959) was an American politician, lawyer, and diplomat who served as United States secretary of state under President Dwight D. Eisenhower from 1953 until his resignation in 1959. A member of the ...
commented that Soviet premier
Nikita Khrushchev Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (– 11 September 1971) was the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 and the Premier of the Soviet Union, Chai ...
and other senior Soviet officials had begun using the technologically advanced
Tupolev Tu-114 The Tupolev Tu-114 Rossiya (; NATO reporting name Cleat) is a retired large turboprop-powered long-range airliner designed by the Tupolev design bureau and built in the Soviet Union from May 1955. The aircraft was the largest and fastest passenge ...
aircraft for their travels, and it was no longer dignified for the president to fly in a propeller-driven aircraft. This paved the way for the Air Force's initial procurement of three
Boeing 707 The Boeing 707 is an early American long-range Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliner, the first jetliner developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, the initial first flew on Decembe ...
-120 (VC-137A)
jet aircraft A jet aircraft (or simply jet) is an aircraft (nearly always a fixed-wing aircraft) propelled by one or more jet engines. Whereas the engines in Propeller (aircraft), propeller-powered aircraft generally achieve their maximum efficiency at much ...
, designated ''SAM (Special Air Missions) 970, 971'' and ''972''. The high-speed jet technology built into these aircraft enabled presidents from Eisenhower through Nixon to travel long distances more quickly for face-to-face meetings with world leaders. Then-Vice President
Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
first used a VC-137A on his visit to Russia in July 1959 for the
Kitchen Debate The Kitchen Debate () was a series of impromptu exchanges through interpreters between U.S. vice president (later U.S. president) Richard Nixon and Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev, at the opening of the American National Exhibition at Sokoln ...
s. The following month, Eisenhower became the first president to fly via jet airplane when he used ''SAM 970'', nicknamed ''"Queenie"'', to meet German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer. During Eisenhower's " Flight to Peace" goodwill tour in December 1959, he visited 11 Asian nations, flying in 19 days, twice as fast as he could have covered that distance in one of the ''Columbines''. ''SAM 970'' to ''SAM 972'' would be removed from the presidential role with the early-1960s arrival of the specially built VC-137C designated ''SAM 26000''. The older planes would be repainted in the Loewy secondary livery designed for
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 ...
and other non-presidential VIP aircraft. ''SAM 970'' is now on display at The Museum of Flight in
Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
, Washington. ''SAM 971'', best remembered for returning the Americans held during the
Iran hostage crisis The Iran hostage crisis () began on November 4, 1979, when 66 Americans, including diplomats and other civilian personnel, were taken hostage at the Embassy of the United States in Tehran, with 52 of them being held until January 20, 1981. Th ...
in 1981, is on display at the
Pima Air and Space Museum The Pima Air & Space Museum is an aerospace museum in Tucson, Arizona, US. It features a display of nearly 400 aircraft spread out over on a campus occupying . It has also been the home to the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame since 1991. Overvi ...
in
Tucson, Arizona Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...
. ''SAM 972'' was scrapped in October 1996.


Loewy's livery design

The new VC-137C was not yet modified for presidential service when
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 ...
took office in 1961. On the recommendation of his wife,
Jacqueline Kennedy Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American writer, book editor, and socialite who served as the first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A popular f ...
, he contacted the French-born American industrial designer
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 ...
for help in designing new livery and interiors for the VC-137C. Loewy, who had seen ''SAM 970'', complained to a friend in the
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
that it "had a garish orange nose and looked too much like a military plane", Air Force One historian and former Smithsonian curator Von Hardesty told
CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...
. He offered Kennedy his design consultation services free of charge. Kennedy chose a red-and-gold design from one of Loewy's initial concept sketches, and asked him to render the design all in blue. Loewy also drew inspiration from the first printed copy of the
United States Declaration of Independence The Declaration of Independence, formally The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen States of America in the original printing, is the founding document of the United States. On July 4, 1776, it was adopted unanimously by the Second Continen ...
, suggesting the widely spaced and upper case ''"United States of America"'' legend in
Caslon Caslon is the name given to serif typefaces designed by William Caslon, William Caslon I in London, or inspired by his work. Caslon worked as an Engraving, engraver of Punchcutting, punches, the masters used to stamp the moulds or Matrix (printi ...
typeface. He chose to expose the polished aluminum fuselage on the bottom side and used two blues, steel blue associated with the early republic and the presidency, and a more contemporary water blue to represent an America both rooted in the past and flying inexorably into the future. The presidential seal was added to both sides of the fuselage near the nose and a large American flag was painted on the tail. Loewy's work won immediate praise from the president and the press. The
cheatline An aircraft livery is a set of comprehensive insignia comprising color, graphic, and typographical identifiers which operators (airlines, governments, air forces and occasionally private and corporate owners) apply to their aircraft. As aircraf ...
suggested a sleek and horizontal image that mirrored America's
Jet Age The Jet Age is a period in the history of aviation defined by the advent of aircraft powered by jet turbine engines and the social and cultural changes fostered by commercial jet travel. Jet airliners were able to fly higher, faster, and farth ...
optimism and prosperity of the era, and today signifies its legacy and tradition. Loewy's VC-137C livery was adapted for the larger
VC-25A 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 ...
when it entered service in 1990, and the secondary variation (without the darker blue cheatline and cap over the cockpit) is still in use on USAF C-40, C-37, C-32, and C-20 aircraft in standard (non-presidential) VIP configurations. The presidential paint scheme can also be seen on
Union Pacific 4141 Union Pacific 4141 is an EMD SD70ACe diesel locomotive painted in honor of George H. W. Bush, the 41st President of the United States. Its paint scheme is based on that of Air Force One, with lettering reading "George Bush 41". Built in 2005 ...
, the locomotive used in George H. W. Bush's funeral train.


SAM 26000

Under
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 ...
, presidential air travel entered the jet age. Although he could use the Eisenhower-era jets for trips to Canada, France, Austria, and the United Kingdom, when he came into office, his primary aircraft domestically was still a prop powered Douglas DC-6#Surviving aircraft, Douglas VC-118A Liftmaster. In October 1962, the modified long-range Boeing VC-137C Stratoliner ''
SAM 26000 ''SAM 26000'' is the first of two Boeing VC-137C aircraft specifically configured and maintained for use by the President of the United States. It used the callsign ''Air Force One'' when the president was on board, otherwise ''SAM 26000'' (sp ...
'', featuring livery designed by Loewy would be delivered, and immediately became an important element of the Kennedy administration's brand. ''SAM 26000'' was in service from 1962 to 1998, serving presidents Kennedy to Bill Clinton, Clinton. On 22 November 1963, ''SAM 26000'' carried President Kennedy to Dallas, Texas, where it served as the backdrop as the Kennedys greeted well-wishers at Dallas's Dallas Love Field, Love Field. Later that afternoon, Kennedy was Assassination of John F. Kennedy, assassinated, and Vice President Lyndon Johnson assumed the office of president. He took the First inauguration of Lyndon B. Johnson, oath of office aboard ''SAM 26000'' before departing to Washington, D.C. Later, in January 1973, ''SAM 26000'' took Johnson's body home to Texas after his state funeral in Washington. Johnson used ''SAM 26000'' to travel extensively domestically and to visit troops in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. ''SAM 26000'' served President Nixon on several groundbreaking overseas voyages, including his famous 1972 Nixon visit to China, visit to the People's Republic of China in February 1972 and his trip to the Soviet Union later that year, both firsts for an American president. Nixon dubbed the plane the "Spirit of '76" in honor of the forthcoming bicentennial of the United States; that logo was painted on both sides of the plane's nose.


SAM 27000

SAM 26000 was replaced in December 1972 by another VC-137C, ''SAM 27000, Special Air Mission 27000'', although SAM 26000 was relegated to non-presidential VIP status (and repainted without the darker blue cap and cheatline), it served as a backup to ''SAM 27000'' until it was finally retired in 1998. In June 1974, while President Nixon was on his way to a scheduled stop in Syria, Syrian fighter jets intercepted Air Force One to act as escorts. The crew was not informed in advance, so took evasive action including a dive."Washington Post Online conversation with Kenneth Walsh on his ''Air Force One: A History of the Presidents and Their Planes''"
''The Washington Post'', 22 May 2002. Retrieved: 18 October 2009.
After announcing his intention to resign the presidency, Nixon boarded ''SAM 27000'' (with call sign "Air Force One") to travel to California. Colonel Ralph Albertazzie, then pilot of Air Force One, recounted that after Gerald Ford was sworn in as president, the plane had to be redesignated as ''SAM 27000'', indicating no president was on board the aircraft. Over Jefferson City, Missouri, Albertazzie radioed: "Kansas City, Missouri, Kansas City, this was Air Force One. Will you change our call sign to Sierra Alpha Mike (SAM) 27000?" Back came the reply: "Roger, Sierra Alpha Mike 27000. Good luck to the president."


Boeing VC-25A

Though Ronald Reagan's two terms as president saw no major changes to Air Force One, the manufacture of the presidential aircraft version of the Boeing 747, 747 began during his presidency. The USAF issued a request for proposal in 1985 for two wide-body aircraft with a minimum of three engines and an unrefueled range of . Boeing with the 747 and McDonnell Douglas with the McDonnell Douglas DC-10, DC-10 submitted proposals, and the Reagan Administration ordered two identical 747s to replace the aging 707 VC-137 variants he used.Williams, Rudi
"Reagan Makes First, Last Flight in Jet He Ordered"
United States Department of Defense, 10 June 2004. Retrieved: 23 June 2009.
The interior designs, drawn up by First Lady Nancy Reagan, were reminiscent of the American Southwest.


21st century

When President George W. Bush left office in January 2009, he flew to Texas in a VC-25 that used call sign SAM 28000, as it did not carry the current president of the United States. Similar arrangements were made for former presidents Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama. President Donald Trump flew to his Mar-a-Lago estate aboard Air Force One on the final day of his first presidency in January 2021. After the deaths of former presidents Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan, VC-25 aircraft flew their remains to their home states of Michigan and California, respectively. On 27 April 2009, a low-flying VC-25 circled New York City for a photo-op and military exercise, training exercise, alarming many New Yorkers. During Joe Biden's 2023 visit by Joe Biden to Ukraine, 2023 visit to Ukraine, the Air Force One call sign was not used for the C-32 aircraft he flew to Poland; to increase secrecy, the call sign was ''SAM060''.


Logistical support

When flying with the President, Air Force One rarely flies alone. It is often accompanied by a fleet of aircraft that can include the back-up VC-25, cargo aircraft, and tankers. In such cases, up to half a dozen cargo aircraft, such as the Boeing C-17 Globemaster III or the Lockheed C-5 Galaxy, precede AF1 by a couple days or more, bringing the Presidential state car (United States), presidential limousine and Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk, Sikorsky VH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, along with Secret Service personnel and several hundred maintenance crew. Longer trips are accompanied by tankers, such as the McDonnell Douglas KC-10 Extender, to limit the need to stop for fuel and ensure that AF1 does not take fuel from an unvetted source. The support aircraft will often use several airports in a region to minimize the impact to one particular airport, and Secret Service may also preposition a Gulfstream C-37B or Boeing E-4 in a neighboring region for backup. In addition to the president, staff, and flight crew, a VC-25A can carry 102 guests in typical domestic business-class Airline seat, seats. The back-up VC-25 typically flies with 14 crew, two pilots, six flight crew, two cooks, and four flight attendants. When transporting the president, the primary VC-25A has three cooks and 15 flight attendants, 20 or more Secret Service agents, and some 40 members of the presidential press pool. During international state visits, another aircraft may be chartered to accommodate another 150 or more journalists and security personnel.


11 September attacks

On September 11 attacks, 11 September 2001, George W. Bush was interrupted as he attended an event at Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida, after United Airlines Flight 175, an airplane hit the South Tower of the World Trade Center (1973–2001), World Trade Center in New York City. He took off on a VC-25 from Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport piloted by Colonel Mark Tillman, the senior pilot of Air Force One that day. Some time later, air traffic controllers warned Tillman that a passenger jet was nearby and not responding to radio calls. Tillman recalls: "As we got over Gainesville, Florida, we got the word from Jacksonville Center. They said, 'Air Force One you have traffic behind you and basically above you that is descending into you, we are not in contact with them – they have shut their responder off.' And at that time it kind of led us to believe maybe someone was coming into us in Sarasota, they saw us take off, they just stayed high and are following us at this point. We had no idea what the capabilities of the terrorists were at that point." Tillman then flew Air Force One over the Gulf of Mexico in order, he later said, to test whether the other aircraft would follow. The other jet continued on its route, and Tillman said that it was later explained to him that an airliner had lost its transponder (aeronautics), transponder, which normally broadcasts an electronic identification signal, and that the pilots on board neglected to switch to another radio frequency. Later, Tillman received a warning of an imminent attack on Air Force One. "We got word from the vice president and the staff that 'Angel was next,' indicating the classified call sign for Air Force One. Once we got into the Gulf [of Mexico] and they passed to us that 'Angel was next,' at that point I asked for fighter support. If an airliner was part of the attack, it would be good to have fighters on the wing to go ahead and take care of us." At this point, Tillman said that the plan to fly the president back to Washington, D.C., was aborted due to concerns that Air Force One would be attacked at Andrews Air Force Base. Instead, Tillman landed at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, and Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, where the president made a speech. After these stops, the president was returned to Washington, D.C. The next day, officials at the
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
and the United States Department of Justice, Justice Department explained that President Bush did this because there was "specific and credible information that the White House and Air Force One were also intended targets". The White House could not confirm evidence of a threat to Air Force One, and investigation found the original claim to be a result of miscommunication.


Planned replacement


VC-25B

The VC-25As are to be replaced as the cost of maintaining the aging systems on their 30-year-old airframes and less efficient GE-CF6 engines has begun to surpass the cost of acquiring a new aircraft. On 28 January 2015, the Air Force announced that the
Boeing 747-8 The Boeing 747-8 is the final series of the large, long-range wide-body airliners in the Boeing 747 family from Boeing Commercial Airplanes. It is the largest model variant of the 747 and Boeing's largest aircraft overall. Following the intro ...
would be the next presidential aircraft. The US Government Accountability Office estimated the total cost at $3.2 billion, and the US Air Force's budget for the program is projected to be nearly $4 billion. In December 2016, Boeing was on contract for preliminary development worth $170 million (~$ in ). During his first presidency, Donald Trump renegotiated aspects of the contract with Boeing, and threatened to cancel the program if the overall cost exceeded $4 billion. In an effort to cut costs, the Air Force contracted to purchase two completed but undelivered Transaero 747-8 intercontinental aircraft from Boeing in 2017. The following year, Boeing struck a deal with Trump to adorn the new planes with a "patriotic color scheme" featuring a deep red stripe down the middle of the aircraft and a dark blue underbelly. Plagued by multiple delays, and the rising cost of the aircraft, this color scheme was scrapped, and a modernized version of the classic ''Air Force One'' design was made public in March 2023. The first VC-25B is scheduled to be delivered in 2027, while the second will come the following year.


Supersonic aircraft

In September 2020, the US Air Force announced several Presidential and Executive Airlift Directorate contracts signed with aircraft manufacturers to begin development of a supersonic aircraft that could function as Air Force One. Contracts have been signed with Exosonic, Hermeus, and Boom Technology, Boom.


Boeing 747-8 from the royal family of Qatar

On 21 May 2025, the Trump administration accepted a
Boeing 747-8 The Boeing 747-8 is the final series of the large, long-range wide-body airliners in the Boeing 747 family from Boeing Commercial Airplanes. It is the largest model variant of the 747 and Boeing's largest aircraft overall. Following the intro ...
as a gift from the House of Thani, royal family of Qatar. The administration plans to use it as the new Air Force One. With an estimated value of US$400 million, this will be the most valuable gift extended to the US from a foreign government. Although the gift will be transferred at first to the United States Department of Defense, Department of Defense and subsequently to the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library, Trump presidential library foundation, it may violate the Foreign Emoluments Clause, Emoluments Clause. For this aircraft to be used as Air Force One, it would have to undergo extensive inspection and modifications to afford the protection to the president that current Air Force One aircraft provide. These modifications would not be done until after 2028. On 28 May 2025, the Washington Post reported that no deal had been agreed because Qatar required a memorandum of understanding confirming that any transfer make it clear that the request had been initiated by the US in order to ensure that Qatar had no legal liability.


Other presidential aircraft

During the Lyndon B. Johnson Administration, Johnson Administration, the United States Air Force acquired a Beechcraft King Air#Air Force One, Beechcraft King Air B90 which was designated Beechcraft King Air#Air Force One, VC-6A (66-7943). The aircraft was used to transport Lyndon B. Johnson, President Johnson between Bergstrom Air Force Base and his family ranch near Johnson City, Texas, and was used at least once to transport the President to Princeton, New Jersey. It was referred to as ''Lady Bird's airplane'' and later in its service life featured a basic color scheme similar to civilian aircraft. When the President was aboard, the aircraft used the call sign Air Force One.Collins, Richard L. "C90 King Airs". ''Flying (magazine), Flying'', Volume 127, Issue 1, 2000, pp. 67–70. United Airlines is the only commercial airline to have operated ''Executive One'', the call sign given to a civilian flight on which the US president is aboard. On 26 December 1973, President
Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
and his family flew as commercial passengers on a United DC-10 from Washington Dulles International Airport, Washington Dulles to Los Angeles International Airport. His staff explained that this was done to conserve fuel by not having to fly the usual Boeing 707 Air Force aircraft.Mudd, Roger and Richard Wagner
Vanderbilt Television News Archive "President / Commercial Airline Flight"
CBS News, 27 December 1973. Retrieved: 23 June 2009.
In November 1999, President Bill Clinton flew from Ankara, Turkey, to Cengiz Topel Naval Air Station outside Izmit, Turkey, aboard a marked Gulfstream III, C-20C (Gulfstream III) using the call sign ''Air Force One'', escorted by three F-16s. On 8 March 2000, President Clinton flew to Pakistan aboard an unmarked Gulfstream III while another aircraft with the call sign ''Air Force One'' flew on the same route a few minutes later. This diversion was reported by several US press outlets. On 1 May 2003, President George W. Bush flew in the co-pilot seat of a Sea Control Squadron Thirty-Five (VS-35 (1990–2005), VS-35) S-3 Viking, S-3B Viking from Naval Air Station North Island, California to the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72), USS ''Abraham Lincoln'' off the California coast, where Bush delivered his 2003 Mission Accomplished speech, "Mission Accomplished" speech. During the flight, the aircraft used the call sign of "Navy One" for the first time. This aircraft is now on display at the National Naval Aviation Museum at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. Barack Obama used the Gulfstream C-37 variant on a personal trip in 2009 to visit the production of August Wilson's ''Joe Turner's Come and Gone'' in New York. Several Boeing C-17 Globemaster IIIs typically accompany the president whenever he travels, carrying the Presidential state car (United States), presidential limousines and other support vehicles, and have been rumored to have discreetly transported presidents and vice presidents in and out of Iraq and Afghanistan without using the ''Air Force One'' call sign. Since 1998, the president has occasionally flown aboard an Air Force C-32, a Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body jet based on the Boeing 757 airliner.Dwyer, Devin
"President Obama wraps blitz with Air Force One rally in Ohio"
''ABC News'', 25 October 2012. Retrieved: 25 October 2012.
The Air Force bought four C-32s in 1996 to fly the president to airports whose runways were too small to accommodate the larger VC-25, or as emergency backup. Today, these aircraft are used to fly vice presidents and other senior officials. The C-32 has also been used by presidents when use of the VC-25 could present operational risks. For example in 2023 when President Biden traveled to Ukraine via Poland using the C-32 to avoid the publicity of the VC-25. In the 2010s, the Air Force acquired a second set of four 757s for presidential transport, assigning them tail numbers 90015, 90016, 90017, and 90018. Service officials do not acknowledge that these aircraft exist, although they are routinely photographed in presidential service. Vice presidents have used a VC-25 on longer trips, using the ''
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 ...
'' call sign. The president regularly flies in helicopters (call sign Marine One) operated by the U.S. Marine Corps.


Aircraft on display

A Lockheed JetStar, Lockheed VC-140B Jetstar used by Lyndon Johnson during his presidency is on display at the LBJ Ranch (now the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park) in Stonewall, Texas. The ranch's runway was too small to accommodate the Boeing 707, so President Johnson would fly it to Bergstrom AFB in Austin, Texas, Austin, then transfer to the smaller JetStar for the short flight to the ranch. Another VC-140B used during the Johnson presidency is on display at the Hill Aerospace Museum which uncovered presidential markings on the plane while stripping the paint for restoration. A McDonnell Douglas C-9, McDonnell Douglas VC-9C used by Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton is on display at Castle Air Museum in Atwater, California, next to the former Castle Air Force Base. Another VC-9C has been at Air Mobility Command Museum in Dover, Delaware, since 2011. VC-137B ''SAM 970'', used from 1959 to 1962 as Air Force One and until 1996 in the presidential fleet, is on display at The Museum of Flight in
Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
, Washington.


In popular culture

A fictionalized version of Air Force One is depicted in the 1997 feature film ''Air Force One (film), Air Force One''. The cabin was built to scale and is as accurate as the production designers could possibly make it. "There weren’t any blueprints or floor plans available, so we had to watch CNN to see what the inside looked like," said the film’s director Wolfgang Petersen.


See also

* * * * * * *


References


Notes


Bibliography

* * * * * * * *


External links


VC-25 – Air Force One Fact Sheet on US Air Force site

SAM 26000 fact sheet on the National Museum of the United States Air Force site

Presidential Gallery, featuring Boeing VC-137C known as SAM (Special Air Mission) 26000

Air Force One page on WhiteHouse.gov
*


Air Force One Pavilion on ReaganFoundation.org

Truman Library & Museum

US Air Force image gallery

Air Force One page on Boeing site

Technical Order 00-105E-9, Segment 9, Chapter 7

Air Force One page on air-force-one.fr
{{authority control 1953 establishments in the United States Boeing 707 Boeing 747 Call signs Presidential aircraft Raymond Loewy Transportation of the president of the United States United States Air Force United States special-purpose aircraft