Trump Flies Older Air Force One to U.K., Sidelines New VC-25B Bridge Aircraft Temporarily
President Donald Trump's decision to fly from Turkey to the U.K. on Wednesday in an older aircraft designated Air Force One has renewed scrutiny around the VC-25B "Bridge" aircraft—a modified Boeing 747-8 donated last year by the Qatari government—that is intended to replace it. Trump in a post on Truth Social on Wednesday said he would send the Bridge Air Force One, which this month made its first flight with the president on board, to the U.K.'s Mildenhall Air Force Base (EGUN), so that U.S. service members could be among the first to tour it. Trump said that, "for old time's sake," he would fly an older aircraft from Turkey—where he attended a NATO summit this week—to the U.K. Trump described it as a "short trip that is totally worth doing in order to give our Great Military Heroes a chance to appreciate our beautiful new addition to the Air Force Fleet!" In June, two top White House officials shared tributes to the old aircraft that were designated Air Force One, implying they had flown the president for the last time. The U.S. Air Force has said they will remain part of the presidential airlift fleet. The trip to Turkey was the Bridge Air Force One's first international flight, following Trump's flight from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland to Medora, North Dakota, on July 1. The aircraft on Saturday led a flyover of the National Mall in celebration of America's 250th anniversary. The Wall Street Journal earlier this year reported that the jet could be ready for Trump by the summer after the Air Force reportedly skipped some planned modifications to speed its delivery. Scrutiny on Air Force One For close to four decades, two Boeing VC-25A aircraft—a modified version of the 747—have been flying as Air Force One, serving every president since George H.W. Bush. Boeing since 2015 has been developing two VC-25B aircraft as replacements. But the program has been long delayed. Per Reuters , their delivery is not expected until mid-2028, and Boeing has spent more than $5 billion on the project despite its fixed-price contract being valued at $3.9 billion. Trump has not shied away from criticizing Boeing and has cited the delays as the impetus for acquiring the Qatari jet, which he plans to use until the VC-25Bs arrive. The plane was built for the Qatari royal family in 2013 and is larger than previous aircraft designated Air Force One, with a reported value of $400 million. Air Force Secretary Troy Meink in 2025 estimated that modifications to the jet by contractor L3Harris would cost no more than $400 million. However, Democratic lawmakers and some aviation experts believe it could cost more than $1 billion and take years. Some officials and experts have expressed concern that the pace of the retrofit could make the Bridge aircraft less secure than the VC-25As. "No risk was taken in security, safety, or mission communications, but the collective team made trades on some of the less commonly used mission sets that Boeing must deliver to support the next 40 years," the Air Force said in June. The Qatari jet had to be dismantled and reassembled to check its structural integrity, swept for listening devices, and equipped with top-secret communications, cyber defense, and anti-missile systems, as well as in-air refueling capability. Trump has said that unlike the VC-25As, it has SpaceX Starlink-enabled communications. Among the most striking changes is a red, white, and blue livery that stands in stark contrast to the VC-25A's robin egg blue and white color scheme. Inside, news outlets have reported that the jet looks similar to how it did when it served the Qatari prime minister and royal family, which the Air Force acknowledged is due to time constraints. "Nobody's ever seen anything like it," Trump told reporters ahead of his first flight on the jet last week. On Tuesday, members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations sent a letter to Meink and L3Harris CEO Christopher Kubasik, criticizing the lack of transparency around the "rushed" Bridge retrofit. The members said the White House for more than a year has refused to provide Congress with details about the project's costs and potential national security risks. They said that public reporting indicates up to $1 billion was spent on the modifications prior to July 4. Citing a June interview with Breaking Defense, the lawmakers said L3Harris executive Jason Lambert was told by the White House to complete the modifications by July 4. Members said this prompted the contractor to "scale back" certain upgrades and force 400 employees to work around the clock. They said the project further required a 3D mock-up of the plane's interior and the acquisition of additional 747s for training purposes, adding to costs. The members asked Meink and Kubasik to respond to a set of questions by July 27 and expand on their answers during a joint classified briefing before the full Senate, no later than August 6.