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A Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental, also known as the “Queen of the Skies” in the aviation industry, from the Qatar government is all set to potentially be US President Donald Trump's new presidential aircraft, i.e., ‘Air Force One’, according to multiple media reports.
“So the fact that the Defence Department is getting a GIFT, FREE OF CHARGE, of a 747 aircraft to replace the 40-year-old Air Force One, temporarily, in a very public and transparent transaction, so bothers the Crooked Democrats that they insist we pay, TOP DOLLAR, for the plane,” said Donald Trump in a social media post on Truth Social.
US officials aware of the development told The New York Times that the Trump administration is set to accept a “luxury” Boeing 747-8 aircraft as a donation from the Royal family of Qatar to upgrade the current serving Air Force One aircraft.
After Trump finishes his term, the aircraft will be donated to Donald Trump's presidential library, two senior officials told the news portal. However, the Qatar government described the “gift” as a “government-to-government” transfer, as per media reports.
Boeing 747-8
The first Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental was sold to the commercial airline Deutsche Lufthansa AG in April 2012. Since then, it has been termed one of the biggest aircraft to ever enter operations.
The aircraft is equipped to fly with 100 passengers and connect any two cities in the world, as it can fly up to 13,650 kilometres (approximately). The build quality of the aircraft is maintained with more damage-resistant and corrosion-resistant “advanced metal alloys”.
The Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental uses carbon composites, advanced aluminium alloys, aluminium alloys, titanium, steel, aluminium, and other composites for building the airframe.
The aircraft can carry 4,47,700 kilogrammes of takeoff weight, including cargo and passengers.
According to the official website, the aircraft is also capable of cruising at a speed of Mach 0.86. It is propelled by the GEnx engines, which are among the cleanest, quietest, and most fuel-efficient turbofan engines in the world.
This high speed makes the 747-8 aircraft the fastest aircraft in the US-based aircraft manufacturer's fleet. On the commercial end, the aircraft is equipped to carry 410 passengers in total, divided into multiple classes on the airline.
Price of Boeing 747-8
The aircraft giant, which has a length of 76.3 metres, a wingspan of 68.4 metres, and a height of 19.4 metres, costs somewhere near the $400 million mark, depending on the specification of the aircraft.
This comes as the upfront cost; then there are maintenance charges for any aircraft, which are termed under the operational fees.
According to multiple media reports and data agencies, the cost of development behind a Boeing 747-8 is estimated to be $4 billion or more over the years, as the company has developed multiple variants of the 747 series aircraft.
