Qatari-Gifted 747 Set to Complete $400M Air Force One Retrofit this Summer

The U.S. Air Force has confirmed that it is on track to deliver a Boeing 747, gifted by the government of Qatar, to serve as an interim presidential transport aircraft by summer 2026.

The service announced this week that it is continuing work on what it is calling the VC-25 bridge aircraft. The move is designed to fill a widening gap in the presidential airlift mission caused by significant delays in Boeing’s official replacement program.

A Fleet Under Pressure

The urgency behind the interim "bridge" aircraft follows a string of challenges with the current presidential fleet. The existing VC-25A aircraft have been in service for approximately 35 years and are increasingly showing signs of age.

Just this week, a VC-25A carrying President Trump and other personnel to the international Davos conference was forced to return to Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. The diversion was triggered by an electrical problem, an example of the reliability concerns that have plagued the aging fleet.

Meanwhile, Boeing’s work on the two new permanent replacements, known as VC-25Bs, has fallen years behind its original 2024 schedule. Due to supply chain hurdles and a shortage of properly cleared workers, those planes are not expected to be ready until 2028 or 2029.

Funding and Technical Overhaul

The decision to revamp the Qatari 747-8 came after President Trump expressed deep dissatisfaction with Boeing's delays and the $3.9 billion fixed-price contract, which has seen the manufacturer take repeated losses.

To fund the modification of the gifted aircraft, the Air Force plans to repurpose $400 million in leftover funds from the LGM-35A Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program. Air Force Secretary Troy Meink defended the budget in recent hearings, dismissing higher estimates that suggested the project could cost upwards of $1 billion.

"We believe the actual retrofit of that aircraft is probably less than $400 million," Meink told lawmakers, noting that the higher estimates often included spare parts and training already accounted for in the broader VC-25B program.

L3Harris is reportedly handling the upgrades, which typically include:

• Hardened Defenses: Shielding against electromagnetic pulses and other threats.
• Advanced Countermeasures: Systems designed to protect the aircraft during flight.
• Secure Communications: Encrypted lines to allow the president to direct forces from the air.