Costs to refurbish Trump’s “free” Air Force One buried in ICBM replacement program

The renovation of a Boeing 747-8—gifted by Qatar to serve as Air Force One for President Trump—has triggered bipartisan scrutiny, chiefly due to classified costs and unusual funding routes. The plane, soon to undergo modification at a secure Texas facility, is at the heart of a Washington guessing game surrounding its true price tag and national security implications, reports the New York Times.

Catching Congressional watchdogs’ eyes is a $934 million fund transfer, which according to an obscure Pentagon document, was redirected from DOD’s Sentinel program—a nuclear modernization initiative meant to replace aging Minuteman III missiles, aka ICBMs (intercontinental ballistic missiles). Originally budgeted at $96 billion, the Sentinel program’s costs have ballooned to $140 billion, triggering a Nunn-McCurdy breach in early 2025. Officials attribute the growth to the enormous complexity of rebuilding Cold War-era silos and command centers.

Security modifications to the 747-8 includes hardened communications, antimissile systems, afterburners, and extensive counter-surveillance measures.