Upgrading Air Force One to a B 747-8i
 

Re: Upgrading Air Force One to a B 747-8i
 

It is unfortunate that the president that ordered the last AF-1 replacement and this one are not able to appreciate the new one .

Obama should have ordered the replacement when he entered office, then he may have been able to use the new one.

Anyway it will be a beauty.

Re: Upgrading Air Force One to a B 747-8i
 

Is a beauty, and probably needs buying, but it's not the kind of purchase a Presidential Newbie could afford... Later, Doug

Re: Upgrading Air Force One to a B 747-8i
 

They clearly don't care about efficiency ;)

Re: Upgrading Air Force One to a B 747-8i
 

There is absolutely NOTHING that is "efficient" about the U.S. Government. :rolleyes:

Re: Upgrading Air Force One to a B 747-8i
 

In 'efficiency' terms what should they be going for.. a 787-10 maybe or a 777x ? Why do they need a 747 other than from a tradition point of view ? Will the White House be the last remaining US operator of the 747 and the *only* US operator of the 747-8i ?

Re: Upgrading Air Force One to a B 747-8i
 

My guess would be that the 747-series offers the greatest potential for "margin of safety" and fail-safety since it has 4 engines vs 2 ... otherwise a recent model 777 or 787 would be a better option in terms of actual operating efficiency. But since the U.S. government isn't (as) concerned about seat-mile costs as airlines would be, a 4-holer which meets the other specific requirements of their acquisition makes the most sense.

Re: Upgrading Air Force One to a B 747-8i
 

I don't imagine Barack Obama landing on one engine on a remote airfield because the choice was made to buy a B 777 or a B 787 to replace the old B 747.

In that case, four engines is always better than two.

Jean Pierre.

Re: Upgrading Air Force One to a B 747-8i
 

This sums it up perfectly. If the President needs to visit an area where the 747 can't land, he will either land close by and then proceed to Marine One or fly on a smaller aircraft such as the 757 or 737.

Re: Upgrading Air Force One to a B 747-8i
 

I do not know if this has been determined or made known, but will this -8 have the extended upper deck like the -8i or will it have the shorter upper deck like the -8F?

Re: Upgrading Air Force One to a B 747-8i
 

The irony is that the -200 flies so little hours, yet "needs" to be replaced, yet we have B-52's 3x older than the 747 that are still flying, and will fly another 30 years.