The $400M Boeing 747 gifted to the US by Qatar has been unveiled as the new Air Force One and this is what makes it different

The Boeing 747 gifted to the US by Qatar has finally gotten its big debut as the new Air Force One.

It was worth $400 million and caused a media firestorm in more ways than one.

But after months of scrutiny, the plane has finally been unveiled as the new Air Force One jet.

Here’s what has officially been changed.

This Boeing 747 has been in the headlines for months

Virtually every aspect of the Boeing 747 gifted to the US by Qatar has been scrutinized under a media lens.

Its unusual call sign of ‘Vader 01’ and its luxurious interior have generated their fair share of headlines.

When it was reported that the US government wanted this plane ready for service by the summer, there was a lot of reservations about whether it could be done.

Then came the news that a July 4th debut was being angled for.

It was happening very quickly, and then the big day came on June 19.

In a speech at Joint Base Andrews, President Donald Trump unveiled the new Air Force One.

“This plane was transformed into a flying White House at a level of luxury that nobody’s ever seen before,” he told the press.

Here’s what sets this Air Force One plane apart

As you might expect, a ton of modifications have been made to the jet to get it ready for service.

This includes upgrades in security, logistics support, and mission communications.

That’s not forgetting the red, white, blue, and gold paint job across the outside.

This choice in coloring marks a departure from the light blue design that originated in the Kennedy era of the early 1960s.

The BBC reported that the interior had been ‘minimally changed’.

And it’s not just in exterior paint that this jet sets itself apart from previous Air Force Ones.

It’s significantly larger than the previous plane – so much so that a new hangar had to be constructed to house it at Joint Base Andrews.

The plane is anticipated to get its big moment on July 4, when it’ll participate in a ceremonial flyover in Washington DC.

Matthew Burchette, the senior curator at the Museum of Flight, has previously held back from designating this plane as a ‘true’ Air Force One plane.

“I would not call the Qatari aircraft a true Air Force One. It’s more of an interim, stop-gap measure until the real Air Force One from Boeing is delivered,” Burchette told Supercar Blondie.

“The reason I say it’s not a true Air Force One (any plane can be called Air Force One as long as the president is on it) is that, while it has been inspected and has some of the features of the Boeing plane, it does not have all the features that the real Air Force One will have. 

“When a 747 goes through modification, it receives hardened, secure communications, anti-missile/self-defense systems, EMP protection, specialized command-and-control capability, medical facilities, aerial refueling capability, and a custom interior with dedicated security upgrades.

“While the Qatari aircraft may have a few of these, it will not meet the full requirements that the Boeing aircraft will. I would call the Qatari gift more of a VIP transport than a true Air Force One.”

Many news outlets have stressed that this plane is being seen as a ‘bridge’ between the current fleet of presidential planes – the VC-25A which have been in service since the early 1990s – and the next generation.

That raises the question – when can we expect those planes to arrive?

When will the Boeing VC-25B Air Force One be ready?

Boeing has been working hard on converting two 747-8 airliners to become the next generation of Air Force One.

While the press coverage has largely gone to the Qatari gifted jet, this upcoming fleet has largely been overshadowed – bar the coverage on its wildly expensive operation manual.

The delivery date was initially set at 2024, before being pushed back to 2027.

It was then changed to 2029, although reporting from Breaking Defense indicates that the first of the planes could be ready by mid-2028.

Watch this space.