President Biden ’s pricy remote office has hit yetanotherroadblock . late mill disruptions and other payoff have forced breeze industriousness behemoth Boeing to delay the release of its next Air Force One K , known by some asThe Flying White House , until at least two years after its original 2024 release date agree to news account and a Department of Defense official .
In a assertion provided to Gizmodo , the Department of Defense official said the new planing machine , a Boeing VC-25B , would be delay due to “ a combination of factors , ” which include supply issues , work force limitation , wiring design timeline , examination , and pandemic related to delay . All tell , the most recent holdup mean Air Force one is now around two years behind schedule .
“ The original pitch escort was ending of 2024 , ” the Defense functionary enunciate . “ We now expect a 24 month postponement . ” That intend Biden may not see his new ride until halfway through his 2d terminus at well .
Photo: Omar Marques (Getty Images)
A Boeing spokesperson acknowledged the reported delays in a statement institutionalise to Gizmodo . “ Our team take very seriously the trust our customers set in us , ” the representative said . “ We bind ourselves accountable to ensure we meet stringent quality dominance requirements on all of our broadcast . ”
That statement confirm earlierreportingon Tuesday from the Journal which first noted the apparent time lag . According to that report , officials were interest the new upgrade aircraft may have taken on damage after Boeing crew attempts to change the exercising weight of the massive plane from a scaffold structure to jacks . Those jacks were reportedly ineffectual to hold the weight of the parts they were supposed to arrest .
While the U.S. Air force arrogate the jack incident did n’t lead to equipment casualty of the plane , the Journal notes the Boeing employee involved was n’t credentialed to supervise the work .
“ The situation was corrected and actions hold to forestall reoccurrence , ” an Air Force spokeswoman order the Journal .
A Turbulent Development
Boeing wasawardeda $ 3.9 billion contract in 2018 under then - President Donald Trump ’s administration to ramp up the two newfangled Air Force One aircraft . If that multi - billion - dollar price tag seems a bit bloated , it was actually a whit less than a previous $ 4 billion price tag rejected by Trump . The former prexy actually went as far as to try andcancelthe Boeing order wholly . The current plane , meanwhile , are nearing three ten of use , CNBCnotes
When the 2018 contract was first announced , Trump administration officialsclaimedthe VC-25B ’s ( modified versions of the more well - known Boeing 747s ) would grace U.S. airspaces assume a patriotic palette .
“ It ’s snuff it to be red , white and dismal , which I think is appropriate , ” Trumpsaidin a tweet at the time . But still , Like many of the previous administration ’s hope , that initial timeline fell wildly scant .
In 2021 , Darlene Costello , the Air Force ’s then Acting Assistant Secretarytestifiedin front of the House subcommittee sense of hearing and claimed Boeing had said the upgrade planes were running around 12 months behind schedule . Then , last calendar month , sources familiar with the planestoldBreaking Defense the delay was actually closer to 17 months . At the time Boeing cited pandemic delays and the failure of its subcontractor GDC Technics ( which was reportedly under declaration to design the plane ’s interior ) for the hold .
AircraftBidenBoeingBoeing 747Donald TrumpTHE BOEINGTransport
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