The proposed new livery for Air Force One is darker, with red, white, gold, and navy blue replacing the current sky blue and white pattern.

President Donald Trump continues to leave his mark on Washington. Throughout his second term in office, the 47th president has made clear that he does not feel bound to keep the arrangements of previous presidencies, and has attempted to reshape the office to his own liking through new decor, renaming, and even the construction of new buildings.

Now Trump has set his sights on the 64-year old livery of Air Force One, the presidential aircraft—intent on updating it to suit his own tastes.

Trump’s New Paint Scheme For Air Force One

Air Force One’s current luminous sky-blue and white paint scheme, with the specialized Caslon typeface “United States of America,” was designed by French-American industrial designer Raymond Loewy in 1962, with input from then-President John F. Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy. That design replaced a previous drab military-style livery. Loewy is best known for his Coca-Cola vending machine design and the Greyhound bus logo.

Although not exactly the “Red, White, and Blue” of the United States, the blue-and-white design of the presidential aircraft has become iconic over its more than six decades of service.

Dating back to his first term, Trump had made his unhappiness with that paint scheme clear and sought to refresh it. In the latter stages of his first term, the White House advanced a proposal to repaint the aircraft, but the plan was canceled by his successor Joe Biden after Trump left office.

Notably, the 47th president’s preferred color scheme still doesn’t match the colors of the American flag. Instead, the new livery will feature navy blue, red, gold, and white. The colors, which closely resembled those of “Trump Force One,” Trump’s personal Boeing 757, were first proposed during Trump’s first term, but were reversed during the Biden administration due to cost and technical concerns.

“Further analysis concluded darker colors, among other factors, on the underside of the VC-25B aircraft might contribute to temperatures exceeding the current qualification limits of a small number of components,” a spokesperson said at the time, per CNN.

Trump’s Qatar Plane Will Also Get the New Color Scheme

Although the paint scheme hasn’t been mentioned much during Trump’s second term, the livery was on a model aircraft displayed at the Commander-in-Chief Ball on the evening of his second inauguration. Moreover, a model aircraft in the Oval Office features the proposed paint scheme.

“A Department of Homeland Security Boeing 737 also started flying with a similar paint job last year,” CNN reported.

The livery will be applied to the 747 luxury jet that Qatar gifted to President Trump earlier this year, and to the two VC-25B Boeing jets that will eventually serve as the presidential aircraft.
In addition, four smaller C-32 aircraft, which often serve as Air Force Two for the vice president, have received or will receive the new paint scheme.

“The first C-32 has been painted and is expected to be delivered to the Air Force in the next few months,” an Air Force spokesperson confirmed to CNN.

Trump Is Reshaping Washington in Many Ways

Changes to the livery of Air Force One are not the first changes Trump has made to the appearance of Washington, DC.

Since returning to office 13 months ago, the president has made a series of high-profile changes to the White House—gilding the Oval Office, ordering the construction of a patio to replace the historic Rose Garden, installing the “Presidential Walk of Fame” along the West Colonnade (complete with Trump-esque insult commentary on predecessors Joe Biden and Barack Obama), and demolished the building’s East Wing to construct an enormous ballroom—plans for which were submitted to the National Capital Planning Commission earlier in the week.

“When completed, it will be the finest Ballroom ever built anywhere in the World,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social social media platform last week.

Trump had his name added to the Kennedy Center and has proposed the construction of the “Independence Arch,” a massive 250-foot-tall monument on Columbia Island to mark the country’s 250th anniversary. Critics have warned that such a structure could disrupt the National Mall’s skyline, as it would be twice the height of the 99-foot-tall Lincoln Memorial—and could also affect air travel due to its proximity to Reagan National Airport.

About the Author: Peter Suciu

Peter Suciu has contributed over 3,200 published pieces to more than four dozen magazines and websites over a 30-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a contributing writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: Editor@nationalinterest.org.

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