Trump gives up flying on new Air Force One after attacking Iran

He took the president to Ankara, the Turkish capital, where he participated in the NATO military alliance summit on Tuesday (7) and Wednesday (8). When it was time to return to Washington, however, the new aircraft was left behind and the service was carried out at least as far as the United Kingdom by the old Air Force One, a Boeing 747-200B with almost four decades of use.

The short-notice exchange led to an obvious suspicion: While in Ankara, Trump ordered renewed attacks on Iran, a country that borders Turkey. And the expensive Qatari plane does not have the defense systems that the previous model boasts.

There are electronic countermeasures, anti-missile systems and decoys to deceive any projectiles launched at the plane. The new Air Force One only has, according to available reports, encrypted communication systems like its predecessor.

At a press conference, Trump was asked if the reason for the exchange was fear for security. He disguised it, saying that he is the first on the list of names to be assassinated by the Iranian regime, a country that he attacked alongside Israel at the end of February.

He said nothing about the plane and then stated that it would be taken "to two or three American bases" in Europe so that "soldiers can see it, as it is truly magnificent."

He then posted on the Truth Social network that the plane would only go to a unit in the United Kingdom and that he would fly on an old Air Force One "for old times' sake" to the base in question, far away from the Middle East theater of operations. It wasn't clear, but apparently from there he will return to the USA on the new device.

Air Force One, Força Aérea One in Portuguese, is the designation of any plane operated by this branch of the Armed Forces in which the president is present. In his first term, Trump ordered replacements from Boeing in 2018 for the two 747-200B in his fleet.

Facing a crisis in its civil aviation area, the company was unable to meet the deadline to deliver the two modified 747-8Is in 2024 - the new date is 2029, when Trump's mandate expires in January.

Boeing admitted to having lost half of today's equivalent of R$15 billion from the project so far due to the technical complexity of installing all the plane's safety systems, which also needs to have a paint resistant to the heat of distant nuclear explosions.

Last year, Trump provoked controversy by accepting the gift from the Emir of Qatar, an aircraft estimated on the market at just over R$2 billion. First, it would be a personal donation, but then the White House decided to hand the plane over to the Air Force.

It transformed into the Air Force One Bridge, indicating its interim status until the arrival of the two younger, safer brothers. The problem, made visible on the first international trip, is precisely the insecurity of the model in contested environments.

The retirement of previous models is justified by the cost of maintenance and operation, around R$ 1.2 million per flight hour. That's seven times more than a commercial 747-8. Additionally, the 747-200B no longer has spare parts.

The "retrofit" of the Qatari plane, which included painting in a color scheme suggested by Trump that broke with the tradition of the squadron that serves the president, was carried out for an estimated R$5 billion by the American company L3Harris Technologies. The device was delivered for use last month.

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