Really? We can’t spend the money to actually buy new airplanes? Really? These planes will fly for years and we want to take on two that have been mothballed in the Mojave Desert? We can fritter away money on a wall but not buy two new planes?
Facing pressure from President Donald Trump to cut the cost of new Air Force One aircraft, the U.S. Air Force is negotiating with Boeing to purchase two 747-8 jetliners that were built for a Russian airline that went bankrupt before they were delivered.
“We’re working through the final stages of coordination to purchase two commercial 747-8 aircraft and expect to award a contract soon,” said Air Force spokeswoman Ann Stefanek, who declined to elaborate on the details.
National security publication Defense One, which first reported the negotiations, said the Air Force was believed to be getting a good deal on the aircraft, which sell for about $386 million on average.
The two aircraft were initially ordered four years ago by Transaero, a Russian airline that went bankrupt in 2015, a person familiar with the talks told Reuters.
Boeing built two 747-8s out of an order of four. But the airline never took ownership of them, and the planes have been stored in the Mojave Desert, where the dry, hot climate slows corrosion, Defense One said.
Recent Comments