After taking President Trump to Ankara for the NATO summit, the brand new VC-25B Bridge plane referred to as into RAF Mildenhall to permit deployed U.S. personnel a particular probability to view and tour the plane.
The go to was formally confirmed by President Trump on the Fact Social platform, the place he additionally recommended that him and his entourage would journey on the ‘previous’ Air Power One for “previous time’s sake” to Mildenhall. This referred to VC-25A 92-9000, which accompanied the VC-25B Bridge to Ankara because the backup plane.
White Home employees took to social media to bid farewell to 92-9000 just lately, simply hours earlier than the VC-25B Bridge was formally unveiled, after it accomplished what was then deliberate to be its closing flight as Air Power One. We are able to now see that these plans have modified, and the VC-25A will get not less than yet one more journey within the highlight.
“To honor our courageous women and men of the Army, we’re sending the model new, and really spectacular, Air Power One to Mildenhall Air Power Base, in the UK, to present them an opportunity to tour the Plane…” – President Donald J. Trump 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/Nf2qCGDKUs
— The White Home (@WhiteHouse) July 8, 2026
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The VC-25B Bridge, primarily based on a Boeing 747-8i, left Ankara as SAM 33, possible referring to the plane’s serial variety of 25-3300, forward of Air Power One’s departure later within the day. It arrived at RAF Mildenhall shortly earlier than 18:30 native time, simply as President Trump boarded 92-9000 in Ankara.
POTUS has simply departed Turkey on the “Outdated Air Power” (VC-25A) Speculating if it’ll meet the brand new VC-25B Bridge within the UK for a gasoline stopover and POTUS will return to Andrews on the VC-25B Bridge. pic.twitter.com/Xm4qOt52uq
— Thenewarea51 (@thenewarea51) July 8, 2026
Forward of the jet arriving, personnel at Mildenhall rapidly started to cowl the fences on the base’s primary recognizing areas with plastic fencing. Vehicles and trailers had been positioned on the within of the fence as an extra barrier. It’s unclear whether or not this was ordered solely from an operational safety perspective – to dam the view – or whether or not there have been wider safety issues in regards to the potential for an tried assault after the U.S. declared its ceasefire with Iran to be over.
#USAF United States Air Power
Boeing VC-25B Bridge 1x#AF83F3 25-3300 – SAM 33
SAM 33, the brand new VC-25B, is en path to RAF Mildenhall from Turkey.
The USAF are at the moment overlaying the fences of the standard viewing areas at Mildenhall. pic.twitter.com/Y7OopAF9pj
— Armchair Admiral 🇬🇧 (@ArmchairAdml) July 8, 2026
Often when these plane, particularly when related to a Presidential motion, land anyplace there’s a diploma of advance discover concerned, permitting further layers of safety to be activated. We don’t know when this determination to go to Mildenhall was taken, and it could be the case that it was made too late for these preparations to be put in place.
Comparable measures, with plastic sheeting overlaying public view spots, had been notably deployed at RAF Fairford quickly after the bottom started launching missions as a part of Operation Epic Fury. In that case, the sheeting appeared after close-up images of assorted munitions being loaded onto strategic bombers had been revealed within the media minutes after being taken. Because the sorts of munitions getting used may very well be recognized, this might have allowed Iran to organize its air defences for sure sorts of assault many hours upfront of the bombers arriving.
VC-25B Bridge First Abroad Journey
Till it flew to Ankara as Air Power One, it was questioned by many – together with The Aviationist – whether or not the VC-25B Bridge can be thought of safe sufficient to make use of for abroad journeys. Although the U.S. Air Power says the plane has been geared up with superior communications and self-protection measures, the quick timeframe of the plane’s conversion in comparison with the numerous years it has taken for the closely delayed VC-25Bs from Boeing to be delivered means that not less than some shortcuts had been taken. It has additionally been famous that no self-protection measures are seen externally on the plane, in contrast to the VC-25As.
In actual fact, because the plane arrived into RAF Mildenhall it turned obvious primarily based on communications between the pilot and air site visitors management that SAM 33 is at the moment unable to speak through the usual UHF frequencies utilized by army air site visitors controllers. As a substitute, they’d to make use of the VHF frequencies normally maintained to be used by civilian guests.
Rumor is the VC-25B(Bridge) will make its debut on the upcoming journey to Turkey.
Will probably be fascinating if the Secret Service and US Air Power will permit a visit to the area on an plane that doesn’t meet the standard requirements for Air Power 1.
— TheIntelFrog (@TheIntelFrog) June 23, 2026
Whereas it may very well be {that a} UHF radio has been fitted to be used by the pilots and that it’s merely unserviceable on this flight, it might be uncommon if just one UHF radio was out there, hinting that it could not have been fitted in any respect. The VC-25As, in the meantime, not solely have UHF radios within the cockpit however are configured to make use of the HAVE QUICK safe communications protocol when circumstances require it.
RAF Mildenhall has been no stranger to the Presidential Airlift Group’s two VC-25As through the years, taking part in host on many events as a refueling cease on longer journeys and – sometimes – as a vacation spot itself. With the larger vary of the VC-25B Bridge and the VC-25B, these stopovers would possibly turn out to be much less mandatory sooner or later, although precautionary stops to maintain the gasoline tanks full for contingency causes might stay normal follow.
Being the plane’s first abroad journey, this would be the first time the VC-25B Bridge plane lands at a UK airfield in its present guise. Nonetheless, within the plane’s earlier life as a part of the Qatar Amiri Flight, the airframe itself has already touched down within the UK on a variety of events.
What number of extra instances the VC-25B Bridge lands on British soil is certain to depend upon whether or not there are additional delays to Boeing’s VC-25Bs. The final recognized timeframe deliberate for the VC-25B’s service entry is in mid-2028, round a yr from now, and round half a yr earlier than President Trump would go away workplace on the finish of his second time period.
There may be unlikely to be one other full state go to to the UK earlier than then – President Trump already bucked custom by being the primary President to have two state visits to the UK – however there could also be one other type of go to, notably given the approaching change of management within the UK. Inviting the U.S. President for a go to to the UK, backed by the potential for a non-public viewers with the King, is continuously used as a manner for brand spanking new UK Prime Ministers to construct a working relationship with their transatlantic counterparts.
President Trump, particularly, is thought to be keen on the UK, proudly owning two golf programs in Scotland and having expressed his liking of King Charles III in addition to the late Queen Elizabeth II on a number of events.
There may be, in fact, additionally the sturdy probability of extra stopovers throughout abroad journeys elsewhere on this planet.
Many because of our good friend Glenn Lockett for speedily offering his photographs straight from the digicam of the VC-25B Bridge’s arrival!
