Before you read any further, I would like to clarify that this article is not about the movie Air Force One! I have been following House of Cards (a TV Series) recently via Netflix, and every time Frank Underwood used to fly off in Air Force One Aircraft, I used to get magnetized by the whole appearance of it. Okay, for those of you who did not understand what Air Force One is let me give a brief introduction about the same. Air Force One is the official air traffic control call sign of a United States Air Force aircraft carrying the President of the United States. In common parlance the term refers to those Air Force aircraft specifically designed, built, and used for the purpose of transporting the president. The Presidential aircraft is a prominent symbol of the American presidency and its power. Here are some interesting facts regarding the same:
- The idea for special aircraft for president was conceived in1953, after the military officials became skeptical about the security of the president in regular commercial aircrafts.
- A number of aircraft types have been used as Air Force One since the creation of the presidential fleet, starting with 2 Lockheed Constellations in the late 1950s: Columbine II and Columbine III. It also has included two Boeing 707s introduced in the 1960s and 1970s, respectively; since 1990, the presidential fleet has consisted of two Boeing VC-25As – specifically configured, highly customized Boeing 747-200B series aircraft. The Air Force plans to procure the Boeing 747-8 to be the next version of Air Force One.
- The plane currently is 232 feet long, 63 feet tall and has a wing span of 195 foot.
- All of the windows in the aircraft are armored.
- Master carpenters have made most of the furniture inside it.
- The plane has 85 phones in total, out of them the white colored ones are for unclassified use and the beige one’s are the secure lines. Also there are 20 TV’s on the plane.
- There is a flying oval office inside the plane and a situation room complete with a plasma TV that can be used for teleconferencing.
- The crew has “Air Force One” written over their uniforms on a presidential seal. It takes 26 crew members to service Air Force One.
- The crew does not rely on the airport steps, to avoid any sabotage. Thus the plane has retractable stairs attached to each of its exit. The three deck plane has two exit doors located in the front.
- In addition to a pilot and a co-pilot there is an engineer and a navigator on the cockpit.
- The body of the plane can withstand nuclear blast from the ground.
- Electronic countermeasure defense systems located in the attic of the plane jam enemy radars. Flares are also hidden on the wings and can be released to confuse enemy missiles. Mirror ball defense technology in the wings scramble infrared missile guidance systems.
- President’s suite includes sleeping quarters, shower, lavatory, double sink and a small gym.
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