From Presidents Roosevelt to Biden, Boeing airplanes have transported U.S. presidents around the world. The U.S. Air Force announced that it will continue the Boeing tradition with the747-8, which will replace the two 747-200s that serve as the presidential Air Force One fleet.
When the 747-8 takes flight as the next Air Force One, Boeing airplanes will mark more than half a century of presidential service through the Jet Age.
Today, the chief executive flies aboard a specially configured 747-200B, the newest and largest presidential airplane. Its capabilities include:
The "flying Oval Office" has 4,000 square feet of interior floor space. Among its accommodations are:
Crew | 26 (passenger/crew capacity: 102) |
Model | 747-200B |
Engines | General Electric CF6-80C2B1 |
Thrust rating | 56,700 pounds, each engine (252 kn) |
Long-range mission takeoff gross weight | 833,000 pounds (377,842 kg) |
Maximum zero fuel weight | 526,500 pounds (238,800 kg) |
Design mission zero fuel weight | 46,000 pounds (20,865 kg) |
Maximum landing weight | 630,000 pounds (285,763 kg) |
Fuel capacity | 53,611 gallons (203,129 L) |
Range | 7,800 statute miles |
Wing span | 195 feet, 8 inches (59.64 m) |
Length | 231 feet, 10 inches (70.66 m) |
Height | 63 feet, 5 inches (19.33 m) |
Service ceiling | 45,100 feet (13.747 m) |
1943, Boeing 314 Clipper
President Franklin D Roosevelt
1942-1945, Douglas C-54C (DC-4) Skymaster
Presidents Franklin D Roosevelt and Harry S Truman
1947-1953, Douglas VC-118 (DC-6) Liftmaster
President Harry S Truman
1959 – 1962 Boeing 707, VC-137A
Presidents Dwight D Eisenhower, John F Kennedy, Lyndon B Johnson, Richard M Nixon
1962 - 1990, Boeing 707, VC-137C
Presidents John F Kennedy, Lyndon B Johnson, Richard M Nixon, Gerald R Ford, James E Carter, Ronald W Reagan, George H W Bush
1990 - current, Boeing 747, VC-25A
Presidents George H W Bush, William J Clinton, George W Bush, Barack H Obama, Donald J Trump, Joseph R Biden.
1943, Boeing 314 Clipper - "The Flying Hotel"
1942-1945, Douglas C-54C (DC-4) Skymaster - "Sacred Cow"
1947-1953, Douglas VC-118 (DC-6) Liftmaster - "The Independence"
1959 – 1962, Boeing 707, VC-137A - "Special Air Mission (SAM) 970"
1962 - 1990, Boeing 707, VC-137C - "Air Force One" SAM 26000 and SAM 27000
1990- current, Boeing 747, VC-25A - "Flying Oval Office"