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Is this one of the president's planes?


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10 minutes ago, rbridges said:

Saw it at KATL.  Is it routine maintenance?

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I Don't know - but about 2 years ago I saw either that very same airplane, or one just like it at KBTV.  I was told to hold short for landing traffic as I awaited to take the runway to depart, when lo and behold that thing landed.  But clearly not the usual presidents plane since it wasn't a 747 and also there was no TFR so he was not resident even if it was. Anyway ... what is that thing?  

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7 minutes ago, rbridges said:

Saw it at KATL.  Is it routine maintenance?

IMG_20190630_110944.jpg

Not the Presidents...Those are 747s.

All of the planes painted like that belong to the 89th Airlift Wing.  They are responsible for the majority of the DV airlift for the President, Vice President, and so on.  They have multiple aircraft from Gulfstream to the Presidential 747s.

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1 hour ago, bradp said:

One of them does touch and goes at Wilmington a couple of times per week.  I had seen another of them frequently at Charlottesville doing touch and goes as well. 

Oh the horror....Touch and Go's in a complex aircraft, tell me it's not so!  :) 

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14 hours ago, aviatoreb said:

I Don't know - but about 2 years ago I saw either that very same airplane, or one just like it at KBTV.  I was told to hold short for landing traffic as I awaited to take the runway to depart, when lo and behold that thing landed.  But clearly not the usual presidents plane since it wasn't a 747 and also there was no TFR so he was not resident even if it was. Anyway ... what is that thing?  

It was for Mike Pence.  He was hanging for an extended weekend in Hubbardton at a friends camp at Lake Hortonia.  

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Didn’t Pelosi take a lot of heat for riding the 75 home to California on the weekends? I suppose we can’t have the Speaker of the House (#2 in line for the President) slum it out in coach...

I know that Presidents have slummed it out in the Gulfstreams to get into smaller airfields.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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The president uses the 757 when flying from Morristown. The 747's have to fly from JFK or Newark.   When he summers in Bedminster MMU is the closest jet airport.  

History has it the Eisenhower flew into Princeton airport in an AF King Air. 

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4 hours ago, PaulM said:

History has it the Eisenhower flew into Princeton airport in an AF King Air. 

I don't know about the King Air, but Ike did fly one of the best looking GA planes ever.
"This U-4B, a U.S. Air Force version of the Aero Commander L-26, was used by President Dwight D. Eisenhower from 1956 to 1960 for short trips. A pilot himself, President Eisenhower would often take the controls, primarily during trips between Washington, D.C., and his farm in Gettysburg, Penn. The first presidential aircraft to have only two engines, the U-4B was also the first presidential aircraft to carry the familiar blue and white paint scheme."
https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/195799/aero-commander-u-4b/

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2 hours ago, Tom said:

I don't know about the King Air, but Ike did fly one of the best looking GA planes ever.
"This U-4B, a U.S. Air Force version of the Aero Commander L-26, was used by President Dwight D. Eisenhower from 1956 to 1960 for short trips. A pilot himself, President Eisenhower would often take the controls, primarily during trips between Washington, D.C., and his farm in Gettysburg, Penn. The first presidential aircraft to have only two engines, the U-4B was also the first presidential aircraft to carry the familiar blue and white paint scheme."
https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/195799/aero-commander-u-4b/

commander.JPG

commander2.JPG

Cool story - I like Ike.

i didn’t know he was a pilot.

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On 6/30/2019 at 6:03 PM, rbridges said:

Saw it at KATL.  Is it routine maintenance?

IMG_20190630_110944.jpg

Yes. Contract MX by Delta. Perhaps more than "routine" maintenance, as they have local guys at their base of ops for that, but Delta has many such contracts.

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The only "justification" for the House Speaker Pelosi to take free 757 rides is that she is second in line for Presidency if President Trump were to be incapacitated. Things could happen quickly in an organized attack. Maybe I'll have to watch By Dawn's Early Light again. It's scary just thinking about it but if bad things were to happen, she would need a decent airborne command and control vehicle.  There are some videos on YouTube floating around that show each President's air force one's flying into the G20. Only a few 1st world nations seem to have dedicated birds for the leadership; I made this determination by analyzing the antenna farms on the roofs. In fact, I believe that India only has their PM sashay around the world in a regular Air India 747. Earlier this year they sent two 777's to Boeing for a serious command and control retrofit. Does Modi's #2 just ride the train?

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