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Donald Trump, the President of the United States, had an eventful journey to Switzerland overnight, with Air Force One’s first attempt to cross the North Atlantic Ocean having to be aborted, with the famous Boeing 747 turning back around. Also known as the VC-25A, this modified jumbo jet has been a source of considerable discussion during Trump’s tenure, as his administration pushes for a replacement with the 747 not getting any younger.
However, Trump did eventually make it to Europe as planned, with his flight touching down this lunchtime amid considerable online tracking interest from both avgeeks and the general public alike. With that being said, the 747 was unable to make the trip, with a modified 
Boeing 757 doing the honors instead.
A Disrupted Journey
Earlier today, Donald Trump touched down at Zürich Airport (ZRH) in Switzerland ahead of his address at the World Economic Forum in Davos. His arrival caused quite a stir online, with Flightradar24 reporting on X that some 112,000 users were tracking the US President’s arrival as his flight came into land. However, Trump’s touchdown took place later than planned, and with a different aircraft, following an issue with the original Boeing 747.
Specifically, as reported by Live & Let’s Fly, an electrical problem that arose following the 747’s departure from Joint Base Andrews (ADW) in the US federal state of Maryland prompted the Air Force One crew to turn the aircraft around and return to its point of departure. According to People Magazine, the famous quadjet touched back down in Camp Springs at 11:07 pm local time last night, with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt saying:
“After takeoff, the AF1 crew identified a minor electrical issue. Out of an abundance of caution, AF1 is returning to Joint Base Andrews. The President and team will board a different aircraft and continue on to Switzerland.”
Better Late Than Never
The different aircraft in question turned out to be a Boeing C-32A narrowbody twinjet, which, like the VC-25A, is also flown by the United States Air Force. This aircraft is a modified version of the 757-200, with Flightradar24 noting that it is 34 years old and bears the registration 09-0015. All things considered, it seems that the President and his team got turned around rather quickly, with the C-32A taking off at 12:05 am local time on Wednesday.
This is just 58 minutes after the faulty 747’s reported arrival, and, while not quite as brisk as Ryanair’s legendary 25-minute turnarounds, it certainly represents an admirable effort given the high levels of security clearance involved. The end result was that Trump’s arrival in Switzerland wasn’t too badly delayed, with tracking data made available by Flightradar24 showing that the Boeing C-32A with him onboard landed at 12:35 pm local time.
The Boeing VC-25A has become something of a hot topic during Trump’s tenure, with the US President striving to replace the ageing quadjets. While this latest incident will likely only add fuel to the fire, a new version, based on the 747-8 rather than the 747-200, isn’t coming any time soon, with Boeing having recently delayed its projected delivery until mid-2028. As such, the US has acquired an ex-Qatari VIP 747-8 as a stopgap solution.
US Air Force Begins Modifying Qatar-Gifted Boeing 747-8 For “Executive Airlift” Use
Trump’s personally styled Air Force One has started its makeover.
The C-32 To The Rescue
For many people, the callsign ‘ Air Force One‘ is synonymous with the Boeing VC-25A, as these modified examples of the 747-200 have long been the aircraft that are most closely associated with transporting the President of the United States of America all over the world. However, the callsign is actually reserved for any USAF aircraft carrying the American leader, meaning that the C-32A would have taken this designation last night.
A quick look at data made available by Flightradar24 shows that 09-0015, the 34-year-old C-32A that took Trump to Zürich, primarily flies domestically within the US from its base in Maryland. However, the jet, which is most commonly deployed as ‘Air Force Two’ on Vice Presidential duties, did go abroad in November, first flying to and from Tel Aviv via Mildenhall and then on a round-the-world trip to Germany, Malaysia, Japan, and South Korea.
