Converting Jet Into 'Most Complicated Aircraft' May Cost Us

President Trump continues to insist he'll accept a $400 million 747 offered by Qatar, but while the plane may be a "free" gift to his administration, taxpayers may not be keen on the bill they could face to convert the plane to Air Force One, as Trump intends. Aviation experts tell NBC News that repurposing the 13-year-old jet with the appropriate security and communications systems could cost more than $1 billion, with hundreds of millions of it likely footed by Americans, and take years—maybe not even finished by the time Trump wraps up his term in 2029. "You're taking a 747, disassembling it, reassembling it, and then jacking it up to a very high level," aviation analyst Richard Aboulafia says of converting it into what NBC calls "the most complicated aircraft on the planet."

The entire plane would first need to be scoured for any security breaches before being put back together with "costly, sophisticated systems for secure government communications, midair refueling, missile defense, countering electronic jamming, and protecting against electro-magnetic pulse attack," the outlet notes. It would also likely require an area designated for Secret Service and White House staff. If the timeline to do all this stretches beyond Trump's stay in the Oval Office, all of that sensitive governmental gear would then need to be ripped out before the plane is transferred to Trump's presidential library foundation, which seems to be the current plan.

Both Democrats and Republicans have slammed Trump over the jet, but he continued on Tuesday to defend his acceptance of it. "The Boeing 747 is being given to the United States Air Force/Department of Defense, NOT TO ME!" Trump posted on Truth Social. "Why should our military, and therefore our taxpayers, be forced to pay hundreds of millions of Dollars when they can get it for FREE from a country that wants to reward us for a job well done. ... Only a FOOL would not accept this gift on behalf of our Country." Trump arrived in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday to a "lavish welcome," with the AP noting that the jet, the trip to the Middle East, and the Trump family's "fast-growing business ties" in that region all hint at the idea "that the combination of these things and more ... could cause the [US] to show preferential treatment to Middle Eastern leaders when it comes to American affairs of state." (More Qatar stories.)