Air Force Diverting Money From Missile Project for President’s Jet Overhaul

Officials will use funds originally allocated for the LGM-35 Sentinel program.

Zach Vasile

Tuesday, July 01, 2025 at 11:12 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Ryan Ewing

The Qatari 747-8 on the runway at Palm Beach International Airport, where President Donald Trump toured it in February. [Shutterstock/Leonard Zhukovsky]

Key Takeaways:

The U.S. Air Force is redirecting "surplus" funds from the LGM-35 Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program to finance the overhaul of a Qatari-gifted Boeing 747-8, intended to serve as a new Air Force One.
This 13-year-old jet was accepted by former President Trump due to significant delays (until at least 2027) in Boeing's official VC-25 replacement program for the next Air Force One aircraft.
The extensive overhaul, projected to cost hundreds of millions of dollars and take up to three years, will involve dismantling for integrity and security checks, and installing top-secret communication and anti-eavesdropping systems.

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The U.S. Air Force is redirecting money intended for an intercontinental ballistic missile system to pay for the overhaul of a Qatari jet that will serve as the next Air Force One.

Inside Defense reported that “surplus” from the LGM-35 Sentinel program will fund the retrofit, which will likely cost hundreds of millions of dollars and could take up to three years. The online news outlet cited an unnamed senior Air Force official.