List of official vehicles of the president of the United States

This is a list of official vehicles of the president of the United States, past and present.

State vehicles

Yachts

Aircraft

Although "Air Force One" is commonly used to refer to the President's primary aircraft, the designation is, strictly speaking, a call sign used to identify any aircraft the president is aboard. (See below.)

Aircraft used as the primary presidential aircraft:

  • Sacred Cow, VC-54C used by presidents Roosevelt and Truman from 1945 to 1947.
  • Independence, VC-118A (46-505) used by presidents Truman and Eisenhower from 1947 to 1953.
  • Columbine II, VC-121A (48-0610) used by President Eisenhower from 1953 to 1954.
  • Columbine III, VC-121E (53-7885) used by President Eisenhower from 1954 to 1959.
  • SAM 970, VC-137A/B (58-6970) used by presidents Eisenhower and Kennedy from 1959 to 1962.
  • VC-118A, (53-3240) used by President Kennedy from 1961 to 1962.
  • SAM 26000, VC-137C (62-6000) used by presidents Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon from 1962 to 1972.
  • SAM 27000 (Spirit of '76), VC-137C (72-7000) used by presidents Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan and George H. W. Bush from 1972 to 1990.
  • SAM 28000, VC-25A (82-8000) used by presidents George H. W. Bush, Clinton, George W. Bush, Obama, Trump, and Biden from 1990 to the present. Its sister aircraft, SAM 29000 (82-9000), serves as the primary backup presidential aircraft.

(The dates shown above are the dates when the aircraft was used as the primary presidential aircraft. Most were retained in service for several years after the dates shown.)

Other presidential aircraft

In addition to the above, a number of other aircraft have been used by presidents for trips of short duration. Below is a listing of aircraft types assigned to the 89th Airlift Wing for use by the President or other senior government officials.

  • VC-9C – Three VC-9Cs (73-1681, 73-1682 and 73-1683), a military variant of the McDonnell Douglas C-9, were in service from the 1976 to 2011.
  • C-20B – A military variant of the Gulfstream III, in service from the late 1980s to 2015.
  • C-32 – Two C-32s, a military variant of the (Boeing 757-200), were acquired in 2002 and two more in 2010.
  • C-37A – Three C-37As (one delivered in 2005 and two in 2006), a military variant of the Gulfstream V, are currently in service.
  • C-40B – Two C-40Bs, a military variant of the Boeing 737-700C have been in service since 2002.
  • VC-118A (53-3240) – A military variant of the Douglas DC-6, in service from 1947 to 1965. Used to access airfields with shorter runways.
  • VC-137A/B – Three VC-137A/Bs (58-6970, 58-6971 and 58-6972), a military variant of the Boeing 707, were in service from 1959 to 1996. These were the first jet aircraft used to transport the President of the United States.
  • VC-137C – Four VC-137Cs, a military variant of the Boeing 707, were acquired in 1962, 1972, 1985 and 1987 respectively and served to the early 2000s.
  • VC-140B – Six VC-140Bs, a military variant of the Lockheed JetStar, were in service from the 1960s to the 1980s.
  • U-4B – Two Aero Commander U-4Bs were in service from 1955 to 1960.

Call signs

The following air traffic control call signs designate aircraft transporting the President:

Rail cars

  • United States (1865), constructed in 1863 and 1864. Abraham Lincoln never used the "elaborately appointed" car.[5] After his assassination, his body was transported to Springfield in it.
  • Ferdinand Magellan (1943–1958, 1984), used by presidents Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower and Reagan for his whistlestop across Ohio in 1984.

See also

References

  1. Joan Wenner. "Presidential Yachts" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on September 1, 2011. Retrieved April 14, 2011.
  2. "John F. Kennedy Fast Facts: Honey Fitz (Boat)". John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. Retrieved June 9, 2013.
  3. "John F. Kennedy Fast Facts: Manitou (Boat)". John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. Retrieved June 9, 2013.
  4. "History". manitouyacht.com. Archived from the original on April 4, 2016. Retrieved April 14, 2011.
  5. Weber, Tom; Kaiser, Emily (July 6, 2015). "How Lincoln's funeral train car perished in Minnesota". Minnesota Public Radio. Retrieved February 25, 2017.
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