US Presidential Air Force One Will Have a New Color

US Presidential aircraft Air Force One. (Wikimedia Commons/usbotschaftberlin)

JAKARTA - The United States Air Force has unveiled a new color scheme across its entire executive transport fleet, including the next-generation Air Force One presidential plane, with a palette of red, white, dark blue, and gold.

The new design marks a change from the current two-color white and blue scheme dating back to the administration of President John F. Kennedy, and revives elements of a red, white, and blue scheme proposed by former President Donald Trump that was scrapped in 2022 after the Air Force determined that a darker color could cause excessive heat problems.

This redesign will be applied to the VC-25B - the military designation for the Boeing 747-8i aircraft that will serve as Air Force One, as reported by Al Arabiya from Reuters (19/2).

The Air Force One program involves converting two 747-8 planes into special jets equipped with advanced communications and defense systems to serve as the next generation of US presidential air transport.

The effort is four years behind schedule, with delivery now expected in 2028.

As a temporary solution, the US government has appointed defense contractor L3Harris Technologies to refurbish a Boeing 747 that was previously used by the Government of Qatar to be used as an interim Air Force One.

In 2025, the United States received a Boeing 747 luxury jet as a gift from Qatar. The White House asked the Air Force to immediately upgrade the gift plane to be used as Air Force One.

In addition, four modified Boeing 757-200s used to transport vice presidents, cabinet members, members of Congress and other senior government officials will use the new livery, the Air Force said.

The 757-200 aircraft will receive their new livery during regular scheduled maintenance periods. One of the jets has already been repainted and will be delivered in the coming months, the Air Force said.

The Air Force did not provide details on how the new design addresses the thermal issues that scuttled Trump's previous painting proposal, which was rejected by the Biden administration after determining that it "could lead to additional engineering, time, and cost."

The Air Force One program has faced delays and cost overruns since Boeing agreed to a $3.9 billion fixed-price contract in 2018 to deliver two modified 747-8 planes to replace the existing fleet. The cost for Boeing's current effort to build the two new jets is more than $5 billion. The current Air Force One aircraft entered service in 1990.

In December, the Air Force bought two used 747-8 planes for $400 million to build crew training and spare parts support ahead of the transition from its aging fleet of 747-200s.