Talyn
Emissary
Note to a comment above. President Reagan's Airforce One (that was entirely paid for by US taxpayers during it's service) was donated to the Reagan Library when it was replaced with the current VC-25As. I don't think former President Reagan was given a bill for it.
The same will happen when POTUS 47 retires, and the VC-25B "Bridge" aircraft is retired/replaced by the fully-outfitted VC-25Bs that are grossly overdue.
More info....
This modified, Qatari-gifted 747-8i is set to serve as an interim Air Force One aircraft ahead of the much-delayed arrival of two fully outfitted VC-25Bs from Boeing.
To get a better sense of how this project came together so quickly, the challenges it faced and the tradeoffs that had to be made, we spoke with Jason Lambert, President of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) at L3Harris, the company that performed the conversion. During the interview, he gave us some unique insights into this highly visible and often controversial effort.
www.twz.com
Also, Here's one of the two other 747-8i's that will serve as trainers/parts supplies to support the forth-coming VC-25Bs into the future since the 747-8i is out of production.
Something that was thought of with the VC-25As that remain until the two new VC-25Bs arrive in the next few years.
Bonus to a previous speculative post about potential "bugs".
From the article...
One of the first things we have to do on this aircraft, in conjunction with the U.S. government, is ensure it is safe. There was a lot of content and buzz on blogs and whatnot about is the aircraft secure? Is there anything that we wouldn’t want coming in on the aircraft? Somebody could listen in, something like that. And I can assure you that was very effectively managed to the highest degree.
Experts from the U.S. government, experts from L3Harris, experts in cyber security, electronic warfare, ensured that every square inch of that plane was clean, not only on the exterior but interior of the plane and all systems within. So I’ll say, there’s just electronic scrubbing, is how I would describe it, to ensure that it was safe and secure. Frankly, that work took place even before we were able to do any real work on the plane.
and...
Q: The aircraft belonged to another country’s government. What had to happen in order to make sure a foreign aircraft like this is free from potential nefarious tampering, bugs and other potential threats? Did every single component have to be examined?
A: What I can say is that a team of experts from the US government, in terms of cyber security, did an immense amount of work on this aircraft, in conjunction with the L3Harris team, to ensure that this aircraft was fully safe from that environment, that threat, and that threat has been fully mitigated. I can say that. How they do it is classified.
The same will happen when POTUS 47 retires, and the VC-25B "Bridge" aircraft is retired/replaced by the fully-outfitted VC-25Bs that are grossly overdue.
More info....
Inside The Making Of The New Air Force One: How L3Harris transformed the gifted Qatari 747-8i into a VC-25B presidential transport in just 10 months.
An informative article on how the new "Bridge" Airforce One was completed.This modified, Qatari-gifted 747-8i is set to serve as an interim Air Force One aircraft ahead of the much-delayed arrival of two fully outfitted VC-25Bs from Boeing.
To get a better sense of how this project came together so quickly, the challenges it faced and the tradeoffs that had to be made, we spoke with Jason Lambert, President of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) at L3Harris, the company that performed the conversion. During the interview, he gave us some unique insights into this highly visible and often controversial effort.
Inside The Making Of The New Air Force One
How L3Harris transformed the gifted Qatari 747-8i into a VC-25B presidential transport in just 10 months.
www.twz.com
Also, Here's one of the two other 747-8i's that will serve as trainers/parts supplies to support the forth-coming VC-25Bs into the future since the 747-8i is out of production.
Something that was thought of with the VC-25As that remain until the two new VC-25Bs arrive in the next few years.
Bonus to a previous speculative post about potential "bugs".
From the article...
One of the first things we have to do on this aircraft, in conjunction with the U.S. government, is ensure it is safe. There was a lot of content and buzz on blogs and whatnot about is the aircraft secure? Is there anything that we wouldn’t want coming in on the aircraft? Somebody could listen in, something like that. And I can assure you that was very effectively managed to the highest degree.
Experts from the U.S. government, experts from L3Harris, experts in cyber security, electronic warfare, ensured that every square inch of that plane was clean, not only on the exterior but interior of the plane and all systems within. So I’ll say, there’s just electronic scrubbing, is how I would describe it, to ensure that it was safe and secure. Frankly, that work took place even before we were able to do any real work on the plane.
and...
Q: The aircraft belonged to another country’s government. What had to happen in order to make sure a foreign aircraft like this is free from potential nefarious tampering, bugs and other potential threats? Did every single component have to be examined?
A: What I can say is that a team of experts from the US government, in terms of cyber security, did an immense amount of work on this aircraft, in conjunction with the L3Harris team, to ensure that this aircraft was fully safe from that environment, that threat, and that threat has been fully mitigated. I can say that. How they do it is classified.
