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The VC-25A Air Force One aircraft in flight over Mount Rushmore
History

The History of Air Force One

From a wartime flying boat to a militarized 747, the story of how the president of the United States has traveled by air for more than 80 years, and what it has cost taxpayers along the way.

1943 to presentSourced to the National Archives, Smithsonian, and Air & Space Forces Magazine

Not a Plane, a Call Sign

"Air Force One" is not the name of a specific airplane. It is the radio call sign given to any U.S. Air Force aircraft while the president is aboard.

Over more than 80 years, that call sign has been carried by flying boats, propeller transports, early jets, and today's militarized Boeing 747s. What has stayed constant is the aircraft's dual role: a secure way to move the commander in chief anywhere on Earth, and a visible symbol of American power the moment it touches down on foreign soil.

This page traces every aircraft that has carried that call sign, what each one could do, what it cost taxpayers, and where the program stands today with the current VC-25B Bridge aircraft and Boeing's long-delayed permanent replacement.

Every Presidential Aircraft, Start to Finish

Sources & Further Reading

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