Procuring an aircraft (or set of aircraft) for use by a Head of State is no easy task.
Nor should it be – especially when it comes to selecting transport for the leader of one of
the most powerful countries in the world. With that being said, the upcoming replacement for
the US Presidential aircraft has had more than its fair share of ups and downs, with delays
and lawsuits plaguing the program’s progress. So what is the latest in this ongoing saga?
For quite some time, it was expected that the first modified Boeing 747-8 would arrive sometime
in 2024. Interestingly, The Drive reported in June 2019 that the Trump Administration was
hoping to expedite the first delivery, with December 2023 being the target.
Of course, as time has passed, even the original 2024 target has started to become
increasingly questionable, with speculation that the first delivery won’t happen until 2025.
This is because Boeing’s primary contractor performing the modification work on the jumbo jets
was dropped early last year. In April 2021, Boeing sued contractor GDC Technics,
for delays and missed deadlines, which it said quote “resulted in millions of dollars in damages
to Boeing and threaten to jeopardize work that is of critical importance to the (US Air Force)
and the president of the United States.” According to a whistleblower, these delays
may have resulted from conflicts of interest between GDC’s owners
and other projects- an issue that will be discussed in the next section of this video.
GDC then countersued Boeing, claiming that the company was making them a scapegoat for
their own failures. GDC Technics was seeking $20 million in damages. However, in another twist,
the Texas-based firm filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Frequently referred to as a
“reorganization” bankruptcy, the US Court states that the debtor usually remains “in possession”
and may continue to operate its business, and may, with court approval, borrow new money.
Things changed again, when, later in the year, the two companies reached a compromise,
with the firms agreeing to dismiss their respective litigation. While the two companies
may actually work together on future projects, the Air Force One project is firmly off the table.
In early October 2021, GDC announced that it had completed its bankruptcy restructuring.
Boeing’s official work with GDC had ceased by mid-2021, but that didn’t mean an end to the drama
surrounding the contractor and its involvement with the project. In a major report produced by
San Antonio Express News, a whistleblower alleged that Boeing had actually outsourced its Air Force
One modification work to a company owned by a foreign government. Indeed, allegations go
on to note that at least one Saudi national was given top-secret Air Force One specifications, a
clear issue of national security. The information was brought forth during GDC’s bankruptcy case.
GDC Technics was 80% owned by the Saudi Arabian government, with the whistleblower
alleging that the Saudi government diverted funds earmarked for the US VC-25B projects
to complete work on two Boeing 787-8 aircraft belonging to the Saudi Finance Ministry. This
took place before it quote “forfeited and abandoned all interests in GDC” in 2019.
The allegations get more serious with a quid pro quo arrangement between Boeing and the Saudi
Arabian government being alleged. This accusation came from whistleblower Ahmed Bashir, who was the
CEO of now-defunct Emerald Aerospace, a firm that performed aircraft modification work in Kansas.
“In other words, Boeing was doling out subcontracts on major US defense projects to GDC
at the same time Boeing was soliciting valuable contracts from GDC’s beneficial
owner — the Saudi Arabian government,” -Ahmed Bashir via San Antonio Express News
The whistleblower initially first filed an “ethics complaint” with Boeing in 2018. The year after,
a whistleblower lawsuit was filed in April 2019 in federal court in Washington State.
It’s noted that these types of lawsuits – also known as Qui tam lawsuits – are sealed and
confidential, allowing the federal government to conduct an investigation without the defendants’
knowledge. The US government eventually decided not to join Bashir’s lawsuit but
reserved the right to intervene at a later time. However, according to his lawyer, Bashir has since
amended his lawsuit, which, as of November 2021, was in the hands of Justice Department attorneys
to evaluate the merits of government intervention. GDC noted that Bashir’s allegations “amount to
nothing more than sour grapes,” as his company lost out on the Air Force One project. Meanwhile,
Boeing is awaiting the filing of an amended lawsuit in order to file an official response.
Spokespersons for both Boeing and the Air Force have declined to comment.
Whatever the situation may be, GDC’s work in modifying the 747s has long
ended, with Boeing continuing to (hopefully) make progress on the jets-
albeit behind a veil of secrecy- something which is to be expected on such a special project.
So with the main contractor for the VC-25Bs out, who has Boeing tasked to take over? As reported by
Defense One, Lieutenant General Duke Richardson, the Air Force’s military deputy for acquisition,
commented on the program’s progress in May 2021 saying,
“We’re going to obviously have to look at the schedule [and] we have to look at
it pragmatically. Boeing is working hard, they’ve got another supplier identified,
we’re going to transfer as much of the work on the interiors as possible.”
Indeed, the planemaker had hoped to engage new suppliers or do the work itself,
telling Simple Flying at the end of April: Boeing is working to mitigate any impact to
these programs as well as to any of the sub-tier suppliers. We have been working with several small
businesses that are key sub-tier suppliers to GDC Technics, and are engaging with all
52 small business sub tiers that contribute to these Boeing programs, in the immediate future.
Boeing added that it was coordinating closely with its customers and that GDC Technics’ work
statement would be moved to quote “new qualified suppliers and/or performed in-house by Boeing.”
Again, given issues of national security, it’s not surprising that details regarding the 747-8
modification work remain confidential. After all, these certainly aren’t
agreements that sub-contractors would be allowed to issue press releases on!
As a result, the public is mostly left in the dark regarding the progress of this project. However,
it seems more and more likely that a first delivery won’t take place until 2025. It wouldn’t
be surprising if the global health crisis and ongoing global supply chain issues had an impact
on the timeline as well, especially since it has already affected so many businesses worldwide.
And, if anyone is out there wondering, there still hasn’t been any news on whether former
President Trump’s suggested paint scheme will be kept, or if the jets will instead retain the same
livery as their predecessors. At this point, it seems to be at the bottom of the priority
list for the government. 2024, 2025, or later?
When do you think these jets will actually be operational? Let us know by leaving a comment.