The article opens with a Ronald Reagan quotation and traces the Air Force’s century of ascension from the Union Army Balloon Corps and Thaddeus S.C. Lowe to the National Security Act of 1947. It describes the Douglas VC-54C “Sacred Cow,” ordered for Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1945, including its conference room, bulletproof window, elevator, Pratt & Whitney engines and Yalta flight.

It covers Air Force One’s original Kennedy-era colors and the 2026 red/white/dark-blue/gold scheme, then the aircraft’s advanced technology: approximately 240 miles of cables, 85 phones, 20 televisions, EMP shielding, electronic countermeasures, flares, chaff, satellite communications and tactical data links. It includes the president’s private suite and a complete medical suite with defibrillator and blood supply.

Further sections cover the Sultan of Brunei’s “Flying Palace,” the professionals who manage the fleet, Marine One and the VH-92A Patriot, and the century of presidential air travel from FDR to Trump.

(June 19, 2026; Michael de la Force; LIKE® Magazine; Leadership Media.)