The U.S. Air Force is repainting Air Force One and other aircraft in the executive fleet with President Donald Trump’s preferred color red, white, and dark blue color scheme.
The repainting of the executive of the executive fleet marks the first rebranding in more than six decades, marking a shift from the John F. Kennedy-era paint scheme.
“The Air Force is implementing a new paint scheme requirement (red, white and dark blue) for VC-25B as well as the additional executive airlift fleet, which will include the new 747-8i and four C-32 aircraft,” an Air Force spokesperson said in a statement.
This change would do away with the Kennedy-era light blue and white designed that has defined the executive fleet for decades.
FLASHBACK: U.S. President John F. Kennedy and U.S. First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy exit Air Force One on arrival at Houston International Airport, Houston, Texas, Cecil Stoughton, White House Photographs, November 21, 1963. (GHI/Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty)
“The C-32s will be painted during regularly scheduled maintenance. The first C-32 has been painted and is expected to be delivered to the Air Force in the next few months,” the spokesperson continued.
Last summer, Trump said, “We’re painting it red, white and blue like the American flag, which is incredible.”
CBS News reported:
Mr. Trump in his first term rolled out a model airplane with the paint colors he wanted for Air Force One, but President Joe Biden canceled that paint design for the VC-25Bs, the Defense Department’s version of the Boeing 747 airliner.
The new paint requirement includes the smaller C-32 aircraft, which carry high-priority personnel such as the first lady or top cabinet officials, and serve as Air Force Two when the vice president is aboard.
Government contractor L3 Harris has been working to upgrade the Air Force Two planes at its Greenville, Texas facility.
Boeing has continued to work on the next generation of Air Force One planes.
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