Trump unveils new converted Air Force One jet he accepted as gift from Qatar

Donald Trump has unveiled the new Air Force One, an upgraded Boeing 747 gifted by Qatar that has been converted into the official US presidential aircraft.

"This is considered the world's most luxurious plane. When it was built, it was built at a level that will probably never be seen again," Mr Trump told a crowd in a new hangar at Joint Base Andrews in Prince George's County, Maryland.

The gift from Qatar is serving as a "bridge" aircraft to transport the president while Boeing works to deliver two purpose-built 747-8s under a $3.9bn (£2.9bn) fixed-price ​contract.

That is currently slated for 2028, four years behind schedule, a delay that ​risks leaving Mr Trump without a ⁠new plane before the end of his term in January 2029.

Questions were raised about the ethics and legality of a US president accepting such an expensive gift from a foreign government, but Mr Trump dismissed the criticism, saying it would be "stupid" ​to turn down the offer.

The new bolder look, a departure from the iconic design used on Air Force One for decades, features a navy blue underbelly with a red stripe above it.

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The left side of the plane, where the president boards, features the presidential seal, and the tail of the aircraft has a huge American flag on it.

Mr Trump confirmed that he would be taking the new plane to the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, next month and indicated he would be returning to China "at some point". China is hosting the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in November.

Mr Trump returned from Europe on Thursday morning on board a military-grade Boeing 747-200 that has served US presidents for more than three decades.

He said it was the plane's final trip, adding that it would ultimately be housed in a museum.

The upgrade cost for the Qatari plane has not been disclosed, but the air force has previously said that security modifications to the jet would cost less than $400m (£301m).

Mr Trump said ​the upgrade was necessary to keep pace with more modern aircraft carrying foreign leaders.

He said the rest of the Air Force One ​fleet will have the new design.

Mr Trump has insisted in the past that he would not fly around in the Qatari jet once he leaves office and said it would instead be donated to a future presidential library.

(c) Sky News 2026: Trump unveils new converted Air Force One jet he accepted as gift from Qatar