WASHINGTON — In a surprise announcement, the U.S. Air Force on Wednesday said it has chosen Boeing’s Everett-built 747-8 to replace two aging 747-200s that serve as Air Force One. The decision does not involve a competitive bidding process.
“The Boeing 747-8 is the only aircraft manufactured in the United States” that “meets the necessary capabilities established to execute the presidential support mission,” Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James said in a news release.
Boeing has had trouble selling the latest iteration of the 747 and has gradually cut the rate of production in recent years, which many analysts have said signals the demise of the program that brought Boeing to Everett in the 1960s.
Today’s Air Force One mission is served by two specially modified Boeing 747-200s, known as VC-25s, which first flew in 1987 and entered service in 1990.
Inside Defense reported in December that the Air Force wanted to buy replacements in 2016 with delivery in 2018.
Previously, the military had said it didn’t need to take delivery until 2021. But with lagging sales, there seemed to be little chance Boeing could keep the 747 line busy that long.
The decision by the Pentagon to buy 747-8s was made through a special process which authorizes the purchase of commercial aircraft “by other than full and open competition,” the Air Force said.
“This decision, in conjunction with the notification of the Air Force’s intent to award a sole source contract to Boeing for the modification of the 747-8, allows discussions with Boeing that will likely lead to a contract for the aircraft platform as well as the modifications necessary to missionize the aircraft,” the Air Force said.
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