President Donald Trump is scheduled to take his first trip on the new Boeing 747-8 Air Force One donated by the Qatari government on Wednesday, departing for an event in North Dakota. The flight will be the first operational use of the aircraft, which the U.S. Air Force has designated the VC-25B Bridge.
The jet, a converted 747-8 that previously served the Qatari head of state, was donated to the United States. The aircraft replaces a Boeing 747-200 that had served as Air Force One since the George H.W. Bush administration and made its final flight in June.
The plane was modified after arriving from Qatar and is now undertaking what the Air Force has called a “final exam” — a series of commissioning flights to certify it for presidential travel, NPR reported. Trump unveiled the aircraft at a hangar at Joint Base Andrews on June 19, the day after the White House bid farewell to the last of the two older VC-25A planes.
The Air Force has said the VC-25B Bridge will serve as a temporary presidential aircraft until a fleet of new 747-8 jets is ready for official travel, expected in about two years, according to Simple Flying. The replacement program has faced repeated delays.
The Qatari government’s donation has drawn criticism over ethics and national security concerns related to accepting a foreign government’s gift. The jet’s value of $400 million far exceeds the $50 limit on unsolicited gifts from a single source in a calendar year, as covered in MSI’s previous reporting.
After the North Dakota event, Trump is considering taking the new Air Force One on a trip to Mount Rushmore in South Dakota on July 3, a day before Independence Day celebrations in Washington, NBC News reported. Trump said the new jet could perform a flyover during the event.