Trump mulls inaugural flight of new Air Force One at Mount Rushmore event

President Trump is considering taking the inaugural flight of the new Air Force One jet when he travels to Mount Rushmore next month as part of celebrations for America’s 250th anniversary, according to a senior White House official and a source familiar with the plans.

President Donald Trump is considering taking the inaugural flight of the new Air Force One jet, gifted to him from Qatar, when he travels to Mount Rushmore in South Dakota next month as part of celebrations for America’s 250th anniversary, according to a senior White House official and a source familiar with the plans.

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No final decision has been made, but months of retrofitting the $400 million luxury jet to serve as the presidential aircraft are nearly complete, the sources said. They said White House officials have been discussing the possibility of making Trump’s planned July 3 trip to Mount Rushmore his first flight on the new aircraft.

The Defense Department accepted the donation from Qatar last year, despite fierce bipartisan criticism and questions surrounding the security and ethics of using the plane for official government business. Aviation experts estimated the whole project could cost over $1 billion to overhaul due to the installation of multiple top-secret systems.