Latest news with #Meink
The Hill
08-08-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Democrats press Air Force on Qatar jet funding details
A group of six Democratic lawmakers is demanding more details from the Air Force as to how the service is siphoning funding from a nuclear missile modernization program to pay for retrofits for a luxury jet, gifted to the Trump administration by Qatar, to make it usable as Air Force One. In a letter sent Wednesday to Air Force Secretary Troy Meink, the lawmakers voice their concerns about how the Air Force is managing funds for the Sentinel nuclear missile program, 'including whether those funds are being raided to retrofit a personal gift to President Trump that likely violates the emoluments clause of the Constitution.' The letter was signed by Sens. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), and Reps. John Garamendi (D-Calif.) and Jamie Raskin (D-Md.). The United States and Qatar are on track to soon finalize a deal for a 747 Boeing luxury jet that will be used as Air Force One, after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and his Qatari counterpart last month signed an agreement outlining the terms of Qatar's 'unconditional donation.' Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have said that the 13-year-old luxury jet, previously used by the Qatari royal family, raises ethical and corruption questions in addition to costing taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars to retrofit the plane into a secure and working Air Force One. Trump, who first announced the controversial gift in May ahead of his visit to the Middle East, has repeatedly insisted the plane is a 'gift' and 'free of charge.' But American taxpayers will foot the bill for the Air Force to strip the jet nearly to the studs to install the required security and communications equipment to function as Air Force One – a task that Meink in June optimistically estimated to cost 'less than $400 million.' Aviation experts and engineers, however, have placed the figure at as much as $1 billion or more. The Democratic lawmakers worry that in providing Trump with a 'palace in the sky,' Qatar is trying to curry favor with the administration. Furthermore, as the plane needs significant modifications to meet Air Force One standards, including required security and communications equipment, the Air Force has plans to pull hundreds of millions of dollars from the Sentinel program — an overbudget and overscheduled upgrade to America's nuclear-equipped missiles — to an unspecified classified project believed to be the Air Force One upgrade. The total price tag of the upgrade is classified, further frustrating lawmakers. 'It appears that funds for programs that the Air Force has continually claimed are among its top national security priorities are now being used as accounts for presidential whims, while the egregious lack of transparency hides the true costs of these programs from taxpayers,' they write. The lawmakers ask Meink for answers to a range of questions by Aug. 20, including whether the Air Force has assessed whether shifting funds out of the Sentinel program will increase the program's costs or risk further delaying its schedule, whether any of the $934 million pulled from the Sentinel program have or will go to retrofits for the Qatari plane, and how much the retrofit is now estimated to cost, among other queries.
AsiaOne
06-06-2025
- Business
- AsiaOne
Retrofitting Qatari jet as Air Force One for Trump to cost hundreds of millions of dollars, US Air Force says , World News
WASHINGTON — It will cost hundreds of millions of dollars to retrofit a Qatari luxury Boeing 747 jetliner to fly as the new Air Force One, Air Force Secretary Troy Meink said on Thursday (June 5). Last month, the US military accepted the gift from Qatar to transport US President Donald Trump. Retrofitting the 13-year-old plane, which has a luxurious interior, will require significant security upgrades, communications improvements to prevent spies from listening in and the ability to fend off incoming missiles, experts say. "It's probably less than US$400 million (S$515 million) to retrofit that aircraft," Meink told lawmakers during a Congressional hearing. Democratic lawmakers have said it could cost more than US$1 billion to retrofit the plane. Meink said a lot of those costs are ones the Air Force would have experienced anyway. "I think there has been a number thrown around, on the order of a billion dollars, but a lot of those costs associated with that are costs that we would've experienced anyway," he said, adding that this included buying additional platforms for training and spares. Legal experts have questioned the scope of laws relating to gifts from foreign governments that aim to thwart corruption and improper influence. Democrats have also sought to block the handover. Qatar has dismissed concerns about the aircraft deal. Trump has also shrugged off ethical concerns, saying it would be "stupid" not to accept the 747-8 jet. The Air Force One programme has faced chronic delays over the last decade, with the delivery of two new 747-8s slated for 2027, three years behind the previous schedule. Trump toured the Qatari Boeing plane in February at a Florida airport. [[nid:717920]]
The Hill
05-06-2025
- Business
- The Hill
Air Force chief: Qatari jet will cost less than $400 million to retrofit
It will 'probably' cost hundreds of millions of dollars for the Pentagon to transform a luxury Qatari jet into Air Force One, Air Force Secretary Troy Meink told lawmakers on Thursday. Meink said it will likely cost less than $400 million to retrofit the Boeing 747 aircraft, the first price estimate given by the Trump administration since the U.S. military accepted the gift from Qatar last month. Under questioning from Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) Meink declined to discuss details of how the plane will need to be retrofitted to become Air Force One, citing classified information, but pushed back at reports that the transformation could cost upwards of $1 billion. 'We believe the actual retrofit of that aircraft is probably less than $400 million,' Meink told the House Armed Services Committee, noting the Air Force had already accounted for spare parts. But Courtney, pointing to the expenses to build out two Air Force One's as part of a $3.9 billion contract in 2018, contended that 'it's clear that this new third plane is going to cost well over $1 billion.' 'You can't retrofit a plane that's built for another purpose for Air Force One and expect it to be a free plane,' he said. 'You've got to install encrypted communications technology, you have to harden the defenses, you have to put countermeasures in there. . . . It's a flying situation room.' He added: 'It's clear that this is going to be a drain on the Air Force's budget.' The Pentagon announced on May 21 that it had officially accepted the 13-year-old luxury jet previously used by the Qatari royal family. The controversial gift was announced ahead of Trump's visit to the Middle East in early May, with the commander-in-chief brushing aside ethical and security concerns about receiving the jet, insisting it was 'free.' Trump has claimed the plane — one of the largest foreign gifts ever accepted by a U.S. president — can be used as a stand-in for the aging Air Force One fleet as delays continue in Boeing's refurbishment of the two 747 aircraft purchased during Trump's first term. Meink acknowledged that the Air Force One program has 'experienced significant delays,' but that officials are working closely with Boeing to accelerate the program. 'We are doing whatever we can' to move the delivery timeline up, he told Courtney. He also conceded that defense officials will need to do 'a deep sweep' of the Qatari aircraft to make sure it doesn't pose a security threat.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Qatari jet that could be new Air Force One will ‘probably' cost less than $400 million to retrofit, Air Force Secretary says
Air Force Secretary Troy Meink told lawmakers on Thursday that it will 'probably' cost the Air Force less than $400 million to retrofit a luxury Qatari plane that President Donald Trump has said he is getting from the Qataris as a gift to use as the new Air Force One. Meink was grilled about the plane's cost by Democratic Rep. Joe Courtney during a hearing before the House Armed Services Committee. 'You can't retrofit a plane that is built for another purpose for Air Force One and expect it to be a free plane,' the Connecticut congressman said, adding that the Qatari plane will require encrypted communications technology, hardened defenses and countermeasures. 'It's clear that this is going to be a drain on the Air Force's budget.' Meink would not discuss details of how the plane will need to be retrofitted, noting that much of that information is classified. But he said estimates that it will cost over $1 billion are high, and that 'we believe the actual retrofit of the aircraft is probably less than $400 million.' The Pentagon announced last month that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth had accepted the Boeing 747 from Qatar that Trump will use once the Pentagon upgrades it to include 'proper security measures and functional-mission requirements.' A the time, a person familiar with the discussions, however, countered that the deal had not yet been finalized and that the talks between the legal teams are ongoing. The aircraft is currently parked in San Antonio awaiting upgrades, and the Air Force told CNN last month that 'as directed by the Secretary of Defense, the Air Force is preparing to award a contract to modify a Boeing 747 aircraft for executive airlift. Details related to the contract are classified.' Retrofitting and installing the required security and communications equipment on a second-hand plane from another government, even a friendly one, is a monumental task, CNN has reported. US spy and security agencies tasked with the overhaul will need to essentially strip the aircraft down to its frame and rebuild it with the necessary equipment.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Retrofitting Qatari jet as Air Force One for Trump to cost hundreds of millions of dollars, Air Force says
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - It will cost hundreds of millions of dollars to retrofit a Qatari luxury Boeing 747 jetliner to fly as the new Air Force One, Air Force Secretary Troy Meink said on Thursday. Last month, the U.S. military accepted the gift from Qatar to transport U.S. President Donald Trump. Retrofitting the 13-year-old plane, which has a luxurious interior, will require significant security upgrades, communications improvements to prevent spies from listening in and the ability to fend off incoming missiles, experts say. "It's probably less than $400 million to retrofit that aircraft," Meink told lawmakers during a Congressional hearing. Democratic lawmakers have said it could cost more than $1 billion to retrofit the plane. Meink said a lot of those costs are ones the Air Force would have experienced anyway. "I think there has been a number thrown around, on the order of a billion dollars, but a lot of those costs associated with that are costs that we would've experienced anyway," he said, adding that this included buying additional platforms for training and spares. Legal experts have questioned the scope of laws relating to gifts from foreign governments that aim to thwart corruption and improper influence. Democrats have also sought to block the handover. Qatar has dismissed concerns about the aircraft deal. Trump has also shrugged off ethical concerns, saying it would be "stupid" not to accept the 747-8 jet. The Air Force One program has faced chronic delays over the last decade, with the delivery of two new 747-8s slated for 2027, three years behind the previous schedule. Trump toured the Qatari Boeing plane in February at a Florida airport.
