In what may be the most valuable gift ever extended to the United States from a foreign government, the Trump administration is preparing to accept a super luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet from the royal family of Qatar.
It is to be available for use by Donald Trump as the new Air Force One until shortly before he leaves office, at which time ownership of the plane will be transferred to the Trump presidential library foundation, sources familiar with the proposed arrangement told ABC News.
The gift is expected to be announced next week, when Trump visits Qatar on the first foreign trip of his second term, according to sources familiar with the plans.
Isnt the 747 old AF and EOL? when was this airframe built? How many miles does it already have on it?
Airplane designs are constantly being updated just because the shape doesn’t have to be. Case in point, though developed in 1963, the latest generation of 747 (the 747-8i) started being delivered in 2012, with the last one in 2023, which is still relatively recent in airplane years.
For another example the B-52 was first introduced in 1955, but is on its 10th generation (B-52J) with updates to avionics as of 2020. So it doesn’t take much to find a good design and then just keep iterating and updating it.