KLM currently operates 19 B777 in commercial service with a further 4 on order.
The Boeing 777 is a long-range, wide-body twin-engine jet airliner manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. It is the world's largest twinjet and is commonly referred to as the "Triple Seven". The aircraft has seating for over 300 passengers and has a range from 5,235 to 9,380 nautical miles (9,695 to 17,372 km) depending on model.
The Shuttle Carrier Aircraft
The first aircraft, a Boeing 747-100 registered N905NA, was originally manufactured for American Airlines and still carried visible American side stripes while testing Enterprise in the 1970s. It was acquired in 1974 and initially used for trailing wake vortex research as part of a broader study by NASA Dryden as well as Shuttle tests involving an F-104 flying in close formation and simulating a "release" from the 747.
The aircraft was extensively modified by Boeing in 1976 Its cabin was stripped, mounting struts added, and the fuselage strengthened; vertical stabilizers were added to the tail to aid stability when the Orbiter was being carried. The avionics and engines were also upgraded, and an escape tunnel system similar to that used on Boeing's first 747 test flights was added. The flight crew escape tunnel system was later removed following the completion of the Approach and Landing Tests (ALT) due to concerns over possible engine ingestion of an escaping crew member.
The C-5 Galaxy was considered for the shuttle-carrier role by NASA, but rejected in favor of the 747—in part due to the 747's low-wing design in comparison to the C-5's high-wing design, and also because the US Air Force would have retained ownership of the C-5, while NASA could own the 747s outright.
These Model Airplanes are 18 inches in length and finely handcrafted, and hand painted by our artists - to scale and museum quality. The Air Force One is the official air traffic control call sign of any United States Air Force aircraft carrying the President of the United States.
Since 1990, the presidential fleet has consisted of two specifically configured, highly customized Boeing 747-200B series aircraft with serial number "28000" and "29000"—with Air Force designation "VC-25A”.
Air Force One is maintained and operated by the Presidential Airlift Group, part of the White House Military Office. The Airlift Group was founded in 1944 as the Presidential Pilot Office at the direction of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. For the next 20 years, various propeller driven aircraft served the President. In 1962, President John F. Kennedy became the first President to fly in his own jet aircraft, a modified Boeing 707. Over the years, several other jet aircraft have been used, with the first of the current aircraft being delivered in 1990 during the administration of President George H. W. Bush.
