Trump Comes Through On Major Promise... Makes Massive $1.4 Billion Change To Air Force One
President Donald Trump has struck an “informal deal” with Boeing for two new Air Force One planes.
“President Trump has reached an informal deal with Boeing on a fixed price contract for the new Air Force One Program. Thanks to the president’s negotiations, the contract will save the taxpayers more than $1.4 billion,” Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley told Fox News on Tuesday.
The deal reached is valued at $3.9 billion, which means a savings of $1.4 billion from the estimates of over $5 billion for the two planes, according to administration officials.
During the transition in Dec. 2016, the then-president-elect threatened to cancel the plane order because the costs were “out of control.”
Boeing said in a statement released on Tuesday the company “is proud to build the next generation of Air Force One, providing American Presidents with a flying White House at outstanding value to taxpayers.”
“President Trump negotiated a good deal on behalf of the American people,” the corporation added.
Popular Mechanics reported that Trump would like the new Air Force One jets ready for service by 2021, which would be in his second term if he is re-elected.
According to CBS News, the first Air Force One came into service in 1959, when Dwight Eisenhower was president.
The aircraft with the designated presidential moniker entered the jet age under President John F. Kennedy in the early 1960s.
The current Air Force One planes came into service over a quarter a century ago in 1990, when George H.W. Bush was commander-in-chief.
CBS News reported the planes contain “state-of-the-art defenses that include: in-flight refueling capabilities, a top secret anti-missile system, and a blast-resistant outer skin, rumored to withstand a nuclear blast.”
Boeing’s stock hit a record high on Tuesday on the news that the deal had been reached between the White House and the corporation.
The Washington state-based company’s stock has more than doubled in valued since Trump took office.
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