President Donald Trump said in February 2025 that his administration was examining whether a used Boeing aircraft could be purchased and converted for presidential travel as delays continued to affect Boeing's next-generation Air Force One program.
Speaking to reporters aboard one of the two aging Boeing 747-200-based VC-25A aircraft then used for presidential transportation, Trump said the administration was looking at alternatives because Boeing was taking too long to deliver the replacements. He indicated that a used Boeing aircraft, potentially obtained from outside the United States, could be considered, while ruling out Airbus. The comments were reported by The Associated Press.
Why the new Air Force One aircraft were delayed
Boeing's long-running VC-25B program involves converting two Boeing 747-8 aircraft into highly specialized presidential transports. The project is much more complex than purchasing conventional passenger jets because the aircraft require extensive modifications for secure communications, survivability, electrical power, medical support and other presidential-mission capabilities.
The U.S. Air Force has said the VC-25B aircraft are intended to replace the current VC-25A fleet, which has faced rising maintenance requirements, parts obsolescence and capability challenges as the aircraft age.
The replacement program was originally expected to deliver aircraft much earlier. A Government Accountability Office assessment said the original baseline called for the first aircraft in September 2024 and the second in February 2025. By 2022, the program baseline had already shifted by more than two years.
At the time of Trump's February 2025 comments, Air Force projections called for delivery of the first VC-25B in 2027 and the second in 2028. That meant the delays could leave the existing VC-25A fleet carrying the presidential mission substantially longer than originally planned.
Engineering and workforce problems added to the schedule pressure
The delays were not caused simply by a shortage of 747 aircraft. Government reviews identified continuing engineering, modification and workforce challenges within the program.
A later GAO assessment of the VC-25B program said design issues, modification rework and workforce challenges had slowed progress. Among the problems identified were unresolved design work involving decompression and environmental-control systems, wiring design and other aircraft modifications.
The presidential aircraft also require systems far beyond those found on a normal commercial 747. Air Force descriptions of the VC-25B program have included upgraded electrical systems, secure mission communications, a medical facility, an executive interior, self-defense systems and capabilities that allow the aircraft to operate with less dependence on airport ground infrastructure.
Some requirements have changed during the program. For example, the replacement aircraft were no longer required to retain the aerial-refueling capability available on the existing VC-25A fleet.
Boeing has absorbed substantial losses on the fixed-price contract
The VC-25B development agreement is a roughly $4 billion fixed-price program covering the development and modification of two 747-8 aircraft. That contract structure has left Boeing responsible for significant cost overruns rather than automatically passing higher expenses to the government.
Boeing's financial disclosures show how those problems translated into losses. In a 2024 regulatory filing, the company reported an additional $250 million reach-forward loss during the second quarter of 2024, primarily because of higher-than-expected costs associated with engineering design changes involving wiring and structural requirements.
Boeing's 2024 annual report later disclosed $379 million in losses for the VC-25B program during 2024, following a $482 million charge in 2023. The company has repeatedly warned that further losses could occur as work continues.
Trump inspected another Boeing 747-8
Days before discussing the possibility of acquiring a used aircraft, Trump toured a newer Boeing 747-8 at Palm Beach International Airport in Florida. The roughly 13-year-old aircraft had previously been associated with Qatar's royal family.
The visit highlighted the large difference between the newer 747-8 platform and the much older 747-200-derived aircraft in the existing presidential fleet. However, obtaining a commercial or former head-of-state 747 would not by itself create a replacement Air Force One. Any aircraft used for the presidential mission would require extensive government-directed modifications, security work, communications equipment and certification before it could perform that role.
The term "Air Force One" is the call sign used for an Air Force aircraft when the president is aboard, rather than the formal model name of a particular airplane. The current presidential aircraft are designated VC-25A, while Boeing's purpose-built replacements are designated VC-25B.
The cost-versus-speed challenge
Using an existing 747-8 offered a possible way to obtain a newer airframe more quickly, but the expensive and time-consuming part of the presidential-airlift mission is not limited to acquiring the aircraft itself.
Secure communications, defensive systems, electrical changes, specialized interiors, survivability requirements and other classified modifications can require substantial engineering and testing. Those requirements help explain why converting another aircraft could still involve significant expense and lead time even if the underlying 747 were immediately available.
That trade-off was central to the administration's search for alternatives: the existing VC-25As were aging, Boeing's dedicated VC-25B replacements were years behind the original schedule, and an interim aircraft would still need to meet demanding presidential-security requirements.
Later developments created an interim presidential aircraft program
Later developments showed that the idea of using another 747-8 moved beyond the discussion stage. In May 2025, the U.S. Department of Defense accepted a Boeing 747-8 previously used by Qatar for modification for the presidential mission. The arrangement became the subject of political, legal and ethical debate in Washington over the aircraft's foreign origin, cost and eventual disposition.
The Air Force subsequently developed what it calls the VC-25B Bridge program. According to the Air Force, the modified bridge aircraft arrived at Joint Base Andrews in June 2026 and began commissioning flights as an interim platform intended to reduce pressure on the aging VC-25A fleet while the permanent Boeing VC-25B aircraft remain under development.
The bridge program does not eliminate the long-term replacement effort. Boeing's extensively modified VC-25Bs remain the planned successor fleet, while the interim aircraft is intended to provide presidential-airlift capacity until those aircraft are ready.
What remains important to watch
The central business question for the VC-25B program remains whether Boeing and the Air Force can complete the permanent aircraft without further major schedule or cost deterioration. The program combines unusually demanding technical requirements with a fixed-price development contract that has already generated substantial losses for Boeing.
For the government, extending the life of the existing VC-25A fleet and operating an interim bridge aircraft also creates costs and operational considerations of their own. The eventual outcome will depend on the progress of modification work, flight testing, security certification and final acceptance of Boeing's two permanent VC-25B aircraft.
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