Air Force Two is the

air traffic control Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled airs ...

designated

call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assigne ...

held by any

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

aircraft carrying the U.S. vice president, but not the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

. The term is often associated with the

Boeing C-32 The Boeing C-32 is the United States Air Force designation for variants of the Boeing 757 in military service. Two variants exist, filling different parts of the military passenger transport role. The C-32A serves the Special Air Mission, prov ...

, a modified

757 757 may refer to: * Boeing 757: a narrow-body airliner * AD 757: a year * 757 BC: a year * 757 (number): a number * Area code 757 Image:Area code 757.png, The area colored red indicates the southeast corner of Virginia served by area code 757 po ...

which is most commonly used as the vice president's transport. Other 89th Airlift Wing aircraft, such as the

Boeing C-40 Clipper The Boeing C-40 Clipper is a military version of the Boeing 737 Next Generation used to transport cargo and passengers. It is used by the United States Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps. The Navy C-40A variant is named "Clipper", whereas the U ...

C-20B Grading in education is the process of applying standardized measurements for varying levels of achievements in a course. Grades can be assigned as letters (usually A through F), as a range (for example, 1 to 6), as a percentage, or as a numbe ...

C-37A The Gulfstream V (Model GV, pronounced "G-five") is a long-range, large business jet aircraft produced by Gulfstream Aerospace, derived from the previous Gulfstream IV. It flies up to , up to and has a range. It typically accommodates four cr ...

, and

C-37B The Gulfstream G550 is a business jet aircraft produced by General Dynamics' Gulfstream Aerospace unit in Savannah, Georgia, US. The certification designation is GV-SP. A version with reduced fuel capacity was marketed as the G500. Gulfstream ...

, have also served in this role. The

VC-25A The Boeing VC-25 is a military version of the Boeing 747 airliner, modified for presidential transport and commonly operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) as '' Air Force One'', the call sign of any U.S. Air Force aircraft carrying the ...

, the aircraft most often used by the president as

Air Force One Air Force One is the official air traffic control designated call sign for a United States Air Force aircraft carrying the president of the United States. In common parlance, the term is used to denote U.S. Air Force aircraft modified and used ...

, has also been used by the vice president as Air Force Two.

History

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

was one of the first senior officials in American government to travel internationally via jet aircraft on official business, taking a Boeing VC-137A Stratoliner on his visit to the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

in July 1959 for the

Kitchen Debate The Kitchen Debate (russian: Кухонные дебаты, translit=Kukhonnye debaty) was a series of impromptu exchanges through interpreters between U.S. Vice President Richard Nixon, then 46, and Chairman of the Council of Ministers Nikita ...

s as Eisenhower's vice president. Domestically, non-presidential VIP travel still relied on the prop powered Convair VC-131 Samaritan aircraft until Nelson Rockefeller was named Gerald Ford's vice president in 1974. Rockefeller personally owned a

Grumman Gulfstream II The Gulfstream II (G-II) is an American twin engine business jet designed and built by Grumman and then in succession, Grumman American and finally Gulfstream American. Its Grumman model number is G-1159 and its US military designation is C-11A ...

jet that he preferred to the much slower Convair; Rockefeller's Gulfstream II then used the " Executive Two" callsign while he was in office. This would prompt the 89th Airlift Wing's acquisition of 3 McDonnell Douglas VC-9Cs in 1975, adding to their 3 VC-137s jets used for senior executive international travel. Prior senior executive aircraft included the former presidential Douglas VC-54 Skymaster, Douglas VC-118A, and

Lockheed C-121 Constellation The Lockheed C-121 Constellation is a military transport version of the Lockheed Constellation. A total of 332 aircraft were constructed for both the United States Air Force and United States Navy for various purposes. Numerous airborne early wa ...

s, held in reserve as back-up aircraft for the newer aircraft designated for presidential travel.

Design

Aircraft allocated for use by the vice president and senior executives authorized to travel under the

Special Air Mission The United States Air Force Special Air Mission provides air transportation for the president of the United States (POTUS), vice president of the United States (VPOTUS), first lady of the United States (FLOTUS), presidential Cabinet, U.S. congres ...

designation operated by the 89th Airlift Wing can be distinguished from the distinctive Raymond Loewy

livery by the lack of the Steel blue

cheatline An aircraft livery is a set of comprehensive insignia comprising color, graphic, and typographical identifiers which operators (airlines, governments, air forces and occasionally private and corporate owners) apply to their aircraft. As aircraft ...

and cap over the cockpit. Former presidential aircraft that has been redesignated for non-presidential VIP travel will be repainted in the secondary livery as illustrated in the difference between

VC-137C SAM 26000 SAM 26000 was the first of two Boeing VC-137C United States Air Force aircraft specifically configured and maintained for use by the president of the United States. It used the callsign ''Air Force One'' when the president was on board, otherwis ...

and

VC-137C SAM 27000 ''SAM 27000'' was the second of two Boeing VC-137C United States Air Force aircraft that were specifically configured and maintained for the use of the president of the United States. It used the call sign Air Force One when the president was ...

's current paint schemes. Both SAM 26000 and SAM 27000 were relegated to a non-presidential VIP role upon delivery of their replacements, but SAM 27000 was repainted by the

Reagan Library The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library is the repository of presidential records from the administration of Ronald Reagan, the 40th president of the United States, and the burial place of the president and first lady, Nancy Reagan. It is the la ...

to match its Reagan era paint scheme (see chronology of

SAM 27000 ''SAM 27000'' was the second of two Boeing VC-137C United States Air Force aircraft that were specifically configured and maintained for the use of the president of the United States. It used the call sign Air Force One when the president was o ...

images under Reagan, George W. Bush, and as currently maintained by the library).

Incidents

In 2012, Joe Biden switched to another plane after a

bird strike A bird strike—sometimes called birdstrike, bird ingestion (for an engine), bird hit, or bird aircraft strike hazard (BASH)—is a collision between an airborne animal (usually a bird or bat) and a moving vehicle, usually an aircraft. The term ...

happened to the plane in which he was flying in California. A similar incident in 2020 involving a bird strike in the engine during takeoff caused Air Force Two to land back at a nearby New Hampshire airport while it was carrying

Mike Pence Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician who served as the 48th vice president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 50th ...

and some of his staff. In June 2021, Air Force Two, with

Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who is the 49th vice president of the United States. She is the first female vice president and the highest-ranking female official in U.S. history, as well ...

on board, was forced to return to Joint Base Andrews in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

after suffering a "technical issue." Harris, who was on her way to Guatemala, resumed her flight on a different aircraft approximately an hour and a half later.'Technical issue' forces Harris back to air base after departing on trip to Guatemala.
/ref>

References

External links

* {{US Air Force navbox Boeing 757 Call signs United States Air Force United States special-purpose aircraft Vice presidency of the United States

History

Design

Incidents

See also

References

External links