The Air Force expects to release an approved acquisition strategy for the Air Force One fleet this fall, reported Bloomberg. The designation “Air Force One” applies to any fixed-wing aircraft carrying the President. However, it is most often associated with two Boeing 747-200 passenger aircraft that are outfitted with a conference room, presidential suite, and advanced communications gear that allows the President and his staff to work while in the air. The Air Force is considering a myriad of options for the Air Force One planes, including buying the 747s from Boeing and contracting the customization out to another company. “Boeing has a 70-year history of helping fulfill this mission, and we believe that makes us best-qualified to build on our longstanding expertise and deliver the integrated capabilities this unique system requires,” company spokeswoman Caroline Hutcheson told the outlet. Hutcheson said Boeing and the Air Force are “in an ongoing dialog” about the company’s role in producing the planes. The existing aircraft are slated to reach the 30-year service life in 2017, but the first new Air Force One is not expected to be delivered until 2018, reported Bloomberg.
RTX’s Raytheon unit was able to “significantly” extend the range of the AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile using mostly software changes in experimental tests last year, expanding the reach and lethality of the standard U.S. dogfighting weapon, company officials said Sept. 15.
