Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
Airbus A380 to become the new Air Force One?
Airbus, the European aircraft manufacturer and largest competitor to Boeing, is reportedly working on an offer to provide the President with their A380 super jumbo to replace the outdated fleet of VC-25's currently being used.Of course, the whole thing is probably a great way to generate some PR for Airbus, as I don't think there is a chance in hell that the United States would fly our president around the world in a European built plane (not that there is anything wrong with the A380!).
There are other reasons why I don't think President Obama would ever pick Airbus to replace Air Force One - Boeing has its headquarters in his home state of Illinois.
Still, the article does point out several reasons why the A380 would be a great choice for the new presidential carrier - emissions are about 25% lower than the 747, despite being a whopping 50% larger. It also produces 50% less cabin noise.
Still, if the new administration is seriously looking to spend $700 Million for these 2 new planes, they'd better do it soon, before you know it, there won't be any cash left to spend on luxury items like this. Lets just hope that they are not looking at the A380 sardine can version recently purchased by this French Airline.
The press claim this A380 would become the new "Air Obama" but failed to realize that the Air Force won't be needing the new jet till 2017, long after Obama ends his one or two terms. By then, the current Air Force One fleet will be 30 years old.
Filed under: News
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jeremy Jan 21st 2009 1:29AM
Given the 2017 date, I think a 787/Dreamliner based plane from Boeing is the most likely alternative.
The problem with the A380, besides the obvious fact that it's European, is that it can land at so few airports - and the president has to go lots of places. Runway lengths and taxiway standards are just too restrictive for the A380, even as more airports outfit themselves for it. The Dreamliner would be much more appropriate, or maybe 747-8s if the largest possible size is needed and that program gets off the ground.