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Pentagon takes first step toward building supersonic Air Force One:
Air Force One is already one of the fastest passenger planes in the world — but the Pentagon wants to make it a lot faster.
The U.S. Air Force recently awarded a contract to the aviation firm Exosonic to begin developing a presidential aircraft that can travel at supersonic speeds. The research award, reportedly worth $1 million, will fund work to "modify" Exosonic's existing plans for a supersonic commercial plane into a proposal for a presidential-grade aircraft.
In a Twitter post this week, the Air Force's Life Cycle Management Center said the contract is intended to "develop a low-boom supersonic executive transport aircraft that will allow key decision makers and teams to travel around the world in half the time it takes now!"
The current version of Air Force One, a Boeing 747-200B series aircraft, can travel at a maximum speed of .84 mach[sic], according to Boeing.
[...] Meanwhile, Boeing already is building an updated Air Force One. The Air Force awarded Boeing a $3.9 billion contract to build two 747-8 aircraft to replace the existing 747-200B planes.
The new planes are expected to be completed by the end of 2024.
(Score: 5, Funny) by kazzie on Saturday September 05 2020, @12:37PM (2 children)
Korea, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan all know the US like to arrive with a BOOM.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by fakefuck39 on Sunday September 06 2020, @03:23AM
Yep, and how long before this thing goes over a populated area, breaking FAA regulations for a "national emergency." I'm sure after filing the proper paperwork and spending money you don't have to fix your house and car, missing work, you'll get reimbursement later.
The whole point of AF1 is to work up there. So why does it need to be supersonic again? If hey have an emergency where this type of transportation is needed, we have fighter planes.
(Score: 2) by driverless on Monday September 07 2020, @02:24AM
It'll be a great Air Force One. Great Air Force One. Sooo big [hand moverment]. Sooo fast [hand moverment]. It'll be the greatest plane ever. Most winningest plane ever. Better than the Air Force Ones that those losers in Europe fly. Soooo fast [hand moverment].
And Mexico will pay for it.
(I'm sorry you guys, I realise you're going through some real shit right now but your clown is great distraction from it all).
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 05 2020, @12:38PM
You can't buy a toilet bowl for the AF1 for that money, how are you going to research anything?
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 05 2020, @01:15PM (3 children)
But the reason AF1 is a 747 now is because it needs to be huge in order to do so many different things. The normal capacity of the Exosonic concept would be only 70 passengers. It's probably just not big enough.
(Score: 2) by kazzie on Saturday September 05 2020, @03:43PM (1 child)
You could stick all the press, etc. on another plane...
(Score: 3, Funny) by driverless on Monday September 07 2020, @02:26AM
Like a de Havilland Coment. Two problems solved at once.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by barbara hudson on Saturday September 05 2020, @05:53PM
Or do a sublicensing deal and make a new version out of titanium instead of aluminium, allowing a top speed in excess of Mach 2.4 instead of Mach 2.1
Neither the F22 nor the F35 would be able to do escort duty - neither one has anywhere near the necessary range, the F35 is way too slow, and neither has the necessary maximum cruise altitude.
So, an opportunity to design new fighter escorts for more $$$$.
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(Score: 1) by MIRV888 on Saturday September 05 2020, @02:37PM (2 children)
Why not use a 777? 747s have been relegated to cargo duty. If an aircraft gets hit with an air to air missile, 4 engines won't matter.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by JoeMerchant on Saturday September 05 2020, @05:03PM
Depends on the missile...
I "knew" a mega-millionaire who had "all the toys" and he would occasionally lapse into a monologue comparison-contrast between his Cessna Citation and G5 - the Citation is the fastest by a significant margin, but its carrying capacity is just too limited for most serious traveling. With the G5 you can load up as many people as (he) would ever want to and their baggage and just go.
Jimmy Buffet did a similar comparison in "A Pirate looks at 50" between his Citation and the big seaplane he got shot up in Jamaica, he was at the BSE (Baby Support Equipment) life stage, and the Citation was just too cramped for all of that.
Now, AF1 has a tradition of getting long in the tooth before being replaced - I believe the previous was a 707. Certainly the 747 can be updated in all kinds of ways to continue to serve as AF1 for a long time to come, but sometimes the Prez just wants to get to and from the Golf course a little faster ya know?
Україна досі не є частиною Росії Слава Україні🌻 https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2023/06/24/7408365/
(Score: 2) by bzipitidoo on Saturday September 05 2020, @06:39PM
Go virtual! Send Hologram POTUS. Use the plane only to lug the equipment around. Safer, too.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by khallow on Saturday September 05 2020, @04:30PM (1 child)
There were more than 1500 747s made. If something breaks on the present Airforce One, it can be replaced cheaply and quickly. They would probably have to maintain multiple redundant warehouses of parts for this plane just in case the plane breaks down in a particular region (like France, Australia, California, etc). I'm reminded of NASA and its many extremely costly one-off efforts. IMHO, these generally add at least an order of magnitude to the cost of the project.
Having said that, the price isn't so bad at a million dollars. Just don't be surprised, if the final cost ends up on the wrong side of ten billion dollars.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by JoeMerchant on Saturday September 05 2020, @05:12PM
A million dollars barely gets you a(n e-)paper study of what a supersonic AF1 might look like. Requirements gathering balanced with present technological constraints, maybe some political (pork) breakdown of supply chain ramifications.
Frankly, if I were Prez, I'd commission a study into a mini fleet of stealth AF1s - each with the capacity to hold about 20% of the AF1 carrying needs, but 6 of them take off in formation, then when needed hook up with a squad of 12 identical fighter escorts and take separate routes to the destination. With modern teleconference capabilities, they could secure-link whatever they need to among the fleet while traveling, and it's certainly easier to switch off the press questions when they're not even on the same plane. Smaller faster planes, more airfield choices, redundant spares, and the obvious increased difficulty for any would-be attackers to even imagine they could touch the real president's plane.
Україна досі не є частиною Росії Слава Україні🌻 https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2023/06/24/7408365/
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 05 2020, @05:01PM (1 child)
TFA didn't mention the identical decoy planes that'll need to be built.
(Score: 2) by istartedi on Sunday September 06 2020, @07:39AM
I'm not sure if they do that for the plane, but they definitely do it with the chopper. I used to live in DC, and one time I saw 3 identical Marine Ones. The real one pealed off at the last minute and landed on the White House lawn. Another time, we were walking along and what looked like Marine One was flying east along U St. Some dude goes, "you're going the wrong way". This was during the GWB administration, LOL.
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