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.
These funds will pay for the estimated hundreds of millions of dollars needed to overhaul a 13-year-old Boeing 747-8 jet, gifted by Qatar, to serve as a new Air Force One.
The Qatari jet was accepted by former President Trump as a stopgap due to significant delays in Boeing's official VC-25 replacement program, which is now expected no earlier than 2027.

See a mistake? Contact us.

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.