“Air Force One” bids farewell to the sky after 35 years of flying American presidents... and the “gift” plane from Qatar is preparing

- After landing near the American capital, Washington, early Thursday morning, two White House officials published farewell messages on social media for the modified Boeing 747-200 - which has flown under the title “Air Force One” (the American president’s plane) since 1990 - coinciding with the imminent delivery of the first of three planes being modified to take on this mission. The White House Communications Director, Stephen Cheung, wrote in a post on the X platform (formerly Twitter), accompanied by a photo of the plane - which the Air Force calls the “VC-25A” - the phrase: “The last flight...

Well done, you good and faithful servant.” White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino also posted a video of the plane and wrote, expressing his gratitude: “I was fortunate enough to travel around the world on this iconic plane for 5 and a half years - out of 35 years spent serving American presidents...

Three 747-800 aircraft are currently being modified to become VC-25B with the aim of assuming Air Force One duties, including a luxury aircraft donated by the Qatari government to fill the time gap between the old aircraft and the two additional aircraft that Boeing is working on modifying, and whose outfitting work will not be completed for approximately two years. It is not yet clear what fate the old VC-25A aircraft will fall into, as the Air Force indicated, in a statement, that they will remain part of the fleet.

An Air Force spokesman told Ofoq News Network, “The VC-25B fill-in aircraft will soon join the active executive air transport fleet, alongside the VC-25A and C-32 aircraft.” The C-32 is a modified version of the Boeing 757, and is often used to transport the US Vice President, the First Lady, and ministers, and it sometimes replaces Air Force One when necessary.

Sources told Ofoq News that the Qatari plane is expected to be delivered “no later than the summer of 2026.” This comes after more than a year of scrutiny and skepticism from lawmakers from both parties, as well as some security officials who criticized Trump's acceptance of such an expensive gift and expressed concern about potential security vulnerabilities.

The plane needed to undergo fundamental modifications to become a suitable alternative to Air Force One, according to what sources told Ofoq News. US intelligence and security agencies were expected to dismantle and reassemble the plane to provide it with the necessary security and communications equipment.

The current fleet of VC-25A aircraft is more than three decades old, and has long been subject to criticism and ridicule from Trump, who wanted to obtain new aircraft. The plane, bearing the number “29000,” landed at Joint Base Andrews on Thursday morning, after carrying Trump on his trip to Europe.

As for the other VC-25 plane, its flight has not been observed since it landed at Majors Airport in Greenville, Texas, on June 2, according to the ADS-B Exchange website, which specializes in tracking flights through open sources. This airport is the same site where the converted Qatari aircraft is being converted for use as a new presidential aircraft.

The Air Force began modifying the donated plane last summer, and plane spotters spotted the plane sporting a new livery chosen by Trump earlier this month. The new aircraft will feature red, white, gold and dark blue colors. This is a color pattern that was proposed during Trump's first term, but the administration of former President Joe Biden canceled it in favor of the traditional pattern (light blue and white) for the presidential plane. With Trump's re-election, the color pattern he preferred for aircraft was re-adopted.

The modified Qatari plane's last flight was on June 10, when it made a short circular flight and returned to land at Majors Airport - its starting point - according to data from the ADS-B Exchange website. Troy Mink, an Air Force official, previously told lawmakers that the cost of equipping the donated aircraft would "most likely" be less than $400 million.

A statement issued by the Air Force last month stated that the plane had officially completed modifications, and that it was "on track to be unveiled in its new livery, which combines the colors of red, white and blue, this summer." “Ultimately, this transitional aircraft fills a pressing need in the short term, ensuring that the Air Force continues to execute its vital, fail-safe mission to serve the Commander-in-Chief, while laying a solid foundation for the future,” the statement said.

It is not yet clear when the plane will be transported to Washington or the fate of the two old planes once the new plane enters service. However, old planes have a rich history, having visited many countries around the world, from Iraq and Cuba to China and Australia.

On September 11, 2001, former President George W. Bush's participation in an event at an elementary school in Florida was interrupted following the attack on the South Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City, and he was quickly transferred to a VC-25A plane. It took him to an Air Force base near Shreveport, Louisiana, then to a bunker at an air force base in Nebraska, and later to Washington, D.C., where he addressed the nation hours later.

According to the Air Force, the plane also carried Presidents Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter, and George H.W. Bush on a trip to Israel to attend the funeral of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995.