Backup Air Force One

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July 25, 2017, 08:32 PM

Oz_Shadow

Backup Air Force One

Does a backup Air Force One always follow the President?

Trump's in Ohio so one is staged at a Michigan AFB.

July 25, 2017, 08:38 PM

egregore

I believe so. There are also identically painted, but not equipped, aircraft to act as decoys.

July 25, 2017, 08:43 PM

MattW

quote:
Originally posted by egregore:
I believe so. There are also identically painted, but not equipped, aircraft to act as decoys.

Never heard of decoys, but I believe there's a second relatively close by. Not thinking of the "Doomsday" planes by chance?

July 25, 2017, 08:48 PM

MikeinNC

couldn't they just toss him into a two seater F16 and race fast and furious to his destination....

smashing windows and breaking the sound barrier all the way??

it's a military plane and armed, sooooooo

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July 25, 2017, 08:51 PM

furlough

It depends. I flew a lot of Phoenix Banner support missions carrying the limos, comm vans, Secret Service people, etc all around the world.

There is always a backup airplane with a complete set of support. Sometimes it is another 747 - sometimes it is a Gulfstream or a 757. Depends on the situation.

As for decoy aircraft, the only time I saw that was with the helicopters. There will usually be 4 helicopters that depart the airfield - one with the President, one escort and another flight of two that are the decoys.

The logistics involved in moving the POTUS around are truly mind-boggling.

This and no other is the root from which a tyrant springs; when he first appears above ground he is a protector.
Plato

July 25, 2017, 09:10 PM

Rightwire

quote:
Originally posted by MikeinNC:
couldn't they just toss him into a two seater F16 and race fast and furious to his destination....

smashing windows and breaking the sound barrier all the way??

it's a military plane and armed, sooooooo

Maybe they do..

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July 25, 2017, 09:12 PM

sigmonkey

quote:
Originally posted by MikeinNC:
couldn't they just toss him into a two seater F16 and race fast and furious to his destination....

smashing windows and breaking the sound barrier all the way??

it's a military plane and armed, sooooooo

Nope.

Have to put him in a T-37.

So he can Tweet...

_{"the meaning of life, is to give life meaning" ✡ Ani Yehudi אני יהודי Le'olam lo shuv לעולם לא שוב!}

July 25, 2017, 09:18 PM

Tailhook 84

quote:
Originally posted by sigmonkey:]

Nope.

Have to put him in a T-37.

So he can Tweet...

Bah da BOOM!

"The Truth, when first uttered, is always considered heresy."

July 25, 2017, 09:29 PM

furlough

quote:
Originally posted by sigmonkey:
quote:
Originally posted by MikeinNC:
couldn't they just toss him into a two seater F16 and race fast and furious to his destination....

smashing windows and breaking the sound barrier all the way??

it's a military plane and armed, sooooooo

Nope.

Have to put him in a T-37.

So he can Tweet...

Awesomesauce, this is.

This and no other is the root from which a tyrant springs; when he first appears above ground he is a protector.
Plato

July 25, 2017, 09:31 PM

comet24

quote:
It depends. I flew a lot of Phoenix Banner support missions carrying the limos, comm vans, Secret Service people, etc all around the world...................The logistics involved in moving the POTUS around are truly mind-boggling.

I've talked to some of the guys who end up on those flight to get vehicles to sites.

The amount of gear is insane.

_____________________________________

Because in the end, you won’t remember the time you spent working in the office or mowing your lawn. Climb that goddamn mountain. Jack Kerouac

July 25, 2017, 09:43 PM

DMF

quote:
Originally posted by Oz_Shadow:
Does a backup Air Force One always follow the President?

Trump's in Ohio so one is staged at a Michigan AFB.

Air Force One is a callsign, not an aircraft. If the President takes a ride in the backseat of an F-15, that would be Air Force One, as that callsign follows the President, not the plane.

___________________________________________
"He was never hindered by any dogma, except the Constitution." - Ty Ross speaking of his grandfather General Barry Goldwater

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July 25, 2017, 10:48 PM

46and2

quote:
Originally posted by DMF:
quote:
Originally posted by Oz_Shadow:
Does a backup Air Force One always follow the President?

Trump's in Ohio so one is staged at a Michigan AFB.
Air Force One is a callsign, not an aircraft. If the President takes a ride in the backseat of an F-15, that would be Air Force One, as that callsign follows the President, not the plane.

Even in a civilian Cessna 172? What about a hot air balloon? I wonder how far it extends.

July 25, 2017, 10:56 PM

comet24

quote:
Originally posted by 46and2:
quote:
Originally posted by DMF:
quote:
Originally posted by Oz_Shadow:
Does a backup Air Force One always follow the President?

Trump's in Ohio so one is staged at a Michigan AFB.
Air Force One is a callsign, not an aircraft. If the President takes a ride in the backseat of an F-15, that would be Air Force One, as that callsign follows the President, not the plane.

Even in a civilian Cessna 172? What about a hot air balloon? I wonder how far it extends.

Any airplane POTUS is in takes the call sign Air Force One. Any helicopter is Marnie One. So yes if POTUS was in a Cessna it would take the call sign. Hot air balloon I'm not sure about.

Airforce One is a call sign not a plane. Sure we think of those 747 painted in the blue and white with the seal as Air Force One but really Air Force One is a call sign.

_____________________________________

Because in the end, you won’t remember the time you spent working in the office or mowing your lawn. Climb that goddamn mountain. Jack Kerouac

July 25, 2017, 11:28 PM

RNshooter

quote:
Originally posted by sigmonkey:
quote:
Originally posted by MikeinNC:
couldn't they just toss him into a two seater F16 and race fast and furious to his destination....

smashing windows and breaking the sound barrier all the way??

it's a military plane and armed, sooooooo

Nope.

Have to put him in a T-37.

So he can Tweet...

Okay, I'll bite. What does this mean?

Bruce

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July 25, 2017, 11:31 PM

PorterN

the plane is called a tweet.

I lol'd

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July 25, 2017, 11:36 PM

Russ59

The Nat Geo or Discovery special I watched a few years ago showed both 747 nose to nose in a hangar - at Langley I believe. I believe they are equally equipped and rotated. The non-Air Force One travels (perhaps not domestically) to nearby airfields as backup.

My friend flew the C5 during Bush2 years. He would occasionally haul USSS equipment around for advance setup. The equipment and logistics required for POTUS is insane.

P229

July 25, 2017, 11:44 PM

DMF

quote:
Originally posted by 46and2:
quote:
Originally posted by DMF:
quote:
Originally posted by Oz_Shadow:
Does a backup Air Force One always follow the President?

Trump's in Ohio so one is staged at a Michigan AFB.
Air Force One is a callsign, not an aircraft. If the President takes a ride in the backseat of an F-15, that would be Air Force One, as that callsign follows the President, not the plane.

Even in a civilian Cessna 172? What about a hot air balloon? I wonder how far it extends.

July 25, 2017, 11:54 PM

46and2

^ now that you mention it, that seems obvious.

July 26, 2017, 08:08 AM

Hound Dog

quote:
Originally posted by DMF:

It only extends to USAF aircraft, flown by USAF aircrew. Hence the "Air Force" portion of the callsign. When it's the VP they use Air Force Two as a callsign. If they fly on a Marine aircraft, the callsign is Marine One for the President.[/QUOTE]

Don't forget "Navy One" when Bush jr flew onto the USS Abraham Lincoln for his "Mission Accomplished" visit. . .

There are two VC-25s; the presidential 747s. Most people just call them "AF1" for the sake of simplicity. I have a really good book about presidential aircraft. There were several dozen aircraft the president has flown on that were known as "AF1." I think the first 'regular' AF1 was FDR's C-54. It had an elevator installed so he wasn't photographed or seen being carried up the staircase into the plane (not a very good image for a head of state). Many of these aircraft are on display at the US Air Force Museum in Dayton. It was cool walking through SAM 26000 and to see where they put Kennedy's coffin after the Dallas shooting. There were a variety of choppers, 4-engine piston planes (C-54, Constellations), the large trans-continental jets (707's), and several smaller Gulfstream-sized planes that presidents used.

As far as backups go, the book stated there was a fleet of jets that shadowed the President during the Cold War. They were very secret, and nobody officially would talk about them or even acknowledge them. I think they were 'bug-out' planes; smaller ones that could use more runways than a 707/747, were nuclear-hardened, relatively innocuous to blend in better, had a lot of comm equipment, and were designed to get the POTUS out of Dodge if the bombs started flying. Maybe this is what you saw.

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Admiral of the Fleet Sir Jacky Fisher}

July 26, 2017, 08:12 AM

JALLEN

One of the 707s is at the Reagan Library in Simi Valley.

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