US accepts luxury jet from Qatar for use as Air Force One for Trump
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Retrofitting the luxury plane offered by Qatar’s royal family will require significant security upgrades that could cost hundreds of millions of dollars.
PHOTO: AFP
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WASHINGTON - The US has accepted a 747 jetliner as a gift from Qatar, and the Air Force has been asked to find a way to rapidly upgrade it for use as a new Air Force One to transport US President Donald Trump, the Pentagon said on May 21.
Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth accepted the jet for use as Mr Trump’s official plane, the Pentagon said.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said the Defence Department “will work to ensure proper security measures and functional-mission requirements are considered”.
Legal experts have questioned the scope of laws relating to gifts
Democrats have also sought to block the handover.
“Today marks a dark day in history: the President of the United States of America officially accepted the largest bribe from a foreign government in American history,” Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said.
The “unprecedented action is a stain on the office of the presidency and cannot go unanswered”, he added.
Qatar has dismissed concerns
Mr Trump has also shrugged off ethical concerns, saying it would be “stupid” not to accept the jet.
When new, the jet had a US$400 million (S$515 million) list price, but analysts at Cirium said a second-hand 747-8 might fetch a quarter of that.
Retrofitting the 13-year-old plane, which has a luxurious interior, will require significant security upgrades, communications improvements to prevent spies from listening in and the ability to fend off incoming missiles, experts say.
The plane might need fighter jet escorts and could be restricted to flying inside the US unless costly security upgrades were made, aviation experts and industry sources said previously.
Democratic Senators Mazie Hirono and Tammy Duckworth said on May 21 it could cost more than US$1 billion to retrofit the plane, and it raised dramatic security risks.
Ms Duckworth said the US has two fully operational Air Force One jets and has no need to retrofit the Qatari plane.
“Any civilian aircraft will take significant modifications,” Air Force Secretary Troy Meink said at a Senate hearing on May 21. “We will make sure we do what’s necessary to ensure security of the aircraft.”
He said the Air Force had been directed to begin planning to address modifications to the plane.
The Pentagon has not said how much it will cost or how long it will take.
The costs could be significant, given the cost for Boeing’s current effort to build two new Air Force One planes is more than US$5 billion. The current Air Force One airplanes entered service in 1990.
The Air Force One programme has faced chronic delays over the last decade, with the delivery of two new 747-8s slated for 2027, three years behind the previous schedule.
Boeing in 2018 received a US$3.9 billion contract to build the two planes for use as Air Force One, thought costs have since risen. Boeing has also posted US$2.4 billion in charges from the project.
Mr Trump toured the Qatari Boeing plane in February at a Florida airport.
CNN reported this week that the Trump administration first approached Qatar to ask about acquiring a Boeing 747 that could be used as Air Force One.
Mr Trump has said Qatar reached out and offered the jet as a “gift”.
Reuters reported earlier in May the military has tapped L3Harris Technologies to overhaul the 747.
The Qatari plane is currently in San Antonio, Texas, Senator Dick Durbin said on on May 21. REUTERS
