Donald Trump Debuts the New Air Force One - and It's Leading the July 4th Washington, D.C. Flyover
President Donald Trumpjust unveiled the brand-new Air Force One. The Boeing 747-8 is a $400 million luxury plane gifted to the U.S. from Qatar.
Trump introduced the brand-new plane at a press conference from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland outside of Washington, D.C., saying, "When you see it, you won't believe it, actually. The quality of woods, the quality of materials. The quality of the engines. These engines are the finest. They're the best in the world. Nothing like it."
He went on to thank Qatar's government for the gift, adding, "It's really an honor. And I want to thank the Emir of Qatar. He's a fantastic guy. He went through a lot over the last few months. He's very brave."
Trump also shared plans for a Fourth of July celebratory flyover in Washington, D.C., led by Air Force One: "And I think I can say we're going to do a flyover like no flyover. This is going to lead a group of many, many planes. This will be a flyover on July 4th. I think I can say the likes of which we've never seen before. Spending a couple of bucks extra for a little fuel. We own the planes, so all we need is a little extra fuel, right?"
The President continued, giving a shout-out of sorts to his pilot, saying, "There's a rumor that when you fly the President, you have to be the best pilot. So my pilot's very good."
Of course, in describing the plane, Trump managed to slip in a not-so-humble brag about Air Force One: "Now when we land at airports in London, in Germany, in different places, nobody tops this one. And that's the way we have to have it for our country. Nobody even comes close. So my return from the G7 summit was the last planned trip aboard the VC-25A, that's the 747 that will probably do the museum thing…It's a plane that was authorized by President Ronald Reagan many years ago."
Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink added (in an Air Force press release), "The safety and security of the commander in chief is our highest priority." Meink continued, "From the beginning, we meticulously evaluated every requirement to accelerate delivery while maintaining the high standards expected of the presidential mission. This effort proves that the U.S. Air Force can move fast without sacrificing quality, security, or reliability."
According to the Air Force, the new VC-25B is now ready for commissioning flights. These are Air Force One's "final exam" before the President begins using the plane for routine flights.
Copyright 2026 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved
This story was originally published June 19, 2026 at 2:35 PM.