Analysis-Trump's Qatari 747 may need fighter escorts to serve as Air Force One

By Mike Stone, David Shepardson and Tim Hepher

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Boeing 747 pitchy offered to President Donald Trump by Qatar arsenic a impermanent flying White House mightiness request combatant pitchy escorts and could beryllium restricted to flying wrong the U.S. unless important costly information upgrades were made, aviation experts and manufacture sources said.

Even if galore improvements to the plane's communications and defenses are made implicit the coming months erstwhile immoderate woody is completed, the subject escort and home regularisation could stay successful place, the experts and sources said.

As the commander-in-chief, however, Trump could waive immoderate and each requirements similar these, a erstwhile Air Force authoritative noted.

Retrofitting the luxury level offered by Qatar's royal household would necessitate information upgrades, communications improvements to forestall spies from listening successful and the quality to fend disconnected incoming missiles, experts said. The costs were not known, but could beryllium important fixed Boeing's existent effort to physique 2 caller Air Force One planes exceeds $5 billion.

The Air Force referred a petition for remark to the White House, which did not person an contiguous comment.

There are superior questions astir whether immoderate operation of combatant escorts and short-term upgrades would beryllium capable to supply capable extortion for the president.

"I don't deliberation it's possible," said Mark Cancian, a elder advisor with the Center for Strategic and International Studies' Defense and Security Department, referring to abbreviated timeline for the heavy modifications.

"Air Force One is designed to beryllium survivable successful each kinds of environments, including a atomic war," helium added, noting the jet's quality to tolerate the electromagnetic pulse from a atomic blast is embedded successful the jet's wiring and systems from the bottommost up. "That's not thing you adhd on."

Trump has dismissed disapproval of his widely-reported program to judge the 13-year-old airplane with a $400 cardinal database price, saying it would beryllium "stupid" to crook down the offer.

Trump besides called it a applicable decision, and that helium was disappointed Boeing had taken truthful agelong to present connected already delayed contracts for the 2 caller Air Force One planes that helium renegotiated during his archetypal term.

"If helium wants it, and helium says 'I'll judge immoderate hazard associated with not having each the worldly the existent Air Force One has,' helium tin bash that," the erstwhile Air Force authoritative said.

While Air Force One does not usually alert with combatant escorts, the caller level whitethorn request them to support against rocket threats, the erstwhile authoritative added.

An escort could beryllium indispensable due to the fact that the Qatari level "wouldn't person the physics warfare and rocket informing systems and immoderate other you subordinate with survivability connected Air Force One," said Richard Aboulafia, managing manager of consulting steadfast AeroDynamic Advisory.

He added planetary question whitethorn beryllium off-limits due to the fact that "you can't warrant the level of information successful planetary airspace oregon airports."

Air Force One astir ne'er requires combatant escorts due to the fact that it is equipped with a scope of precocious antiaircraft systems including flares, physics jammers and infrared detection systems that support against rocket strikes.

Escorts sometimes alert with the pitchy erstwhile it is overseas, oregon successful moments of nationalist information hazard specified arsenic aft the attacks of September 11, 2001.

The authorities has tapped L3Harris Technologies to overhaul the 747 arsenic it waits for transportation of the 2 delayed caller Air Force One craft from Boeing.

Other upgrades could see a communications suite that tin grip delicate White House and craft unit functions, and changing the interior truthful it tin enactment Trump, his staff, the Secret Service and the press, said Douglas Birkey, enforcement manager of the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies.

Under immoderate scenario, the U.S. subject would request to instal caller information features and perchance caller wiring earlier the level was utilized to transport Trump, experts say.

DELAYS

First mooted a decennary ago, the Air Force One programme has faced chronic delays, with the transportation of 2 caller 747-8s slated for 2027, 3 years down the erstwhile schedule.

Boeing successful 2018 received a $3.9 cardinal declaration to physique the 2 planes for usage arsenic Air Force One and costs person since risen to astatine slightest $4.7 billion. Boeing has besides posted $2.4 cardinal of charges from the project.

Those jets were themselves primitively intended for a overseas airline, Russian bearer Transaero, which went bankrupt successful 2015. Using existing airframes was meant to trim costs but Boeing has since taken billions of dollars successful charges due to the fact that the costs to retrofit the level person acold exceeded the declaration price.

In February, Trump toured a Boeing 747-8 built for Qatar to item the delays.

The White House said astatine the clip that the sojourn allowed him to "check retired the caller hardware/technology," without elaborating.

The craft was primitively operated by state-owned VIP hose Qatar Amiri flight, which performs backstage flights for members of the country's ruling household and different authorities officials, according to specializer databases.

It was reported sold successful 2023 to Global Jet Isle of Man, a backstage charter steadfast that has declined to remark connected the jet.

There are besides questions implicit the $400 cardinal worth wide placed connected the jet, based connected caller prices for the aircraft, which halted accumulation successful 2023.

Analysts Cirium said a second-hand 747-8 mightiness fetch a 4th of that, portion a trader successful VIP jets said the bespoke interior would beryllium worthy overmuch much than the level itself.

(Reporting by Mike Stone and David Shepardson successful Washington, Tim Hepher successful Paris and Paul Sandle successful London; Editing by Chris Sanders and Jamie Freed)