that’s what AF1 should be, not some multi billion with a B boondoggle.
Trying to find more details. Someone posted the following on the Ch 7 Boston site, 2 hrs ago:
>>tail number N121JM, came out of New Castle DE to Atlantic City, then to Hanscom earlier today, was assumed to be going back to Atlantic City ( I
couldn’t find a filed flight plan) and then there was a filed plan fromAtlantic City back to New Castle that is showing delayed THe source of the tail number was LiveATC’s zulu minus 5 hr audio archive for KBED tower for 930 local to 10 local time, flight data from Flightaware dot com
AF1 is designed to withstand a nuclear environment and is to be used for reconstitution. It has many different forms of communications equipment and can communicate to the forces even during the trans attack phase. The communication equipment is also used in day to day operations to ensure the president can direct the Government during peacetime events.
A Gulfstream IV does not have the ability to carry that equipment nor does it have the performance to keep aloft for the extremely long periods of time required if things go south and we have a nuclear exchange.