# The U.S. Air Force is targeting a Fourth of July delivery for a Boeing 747 gifted by Qatar.

*aerospace · news · 2026-05-06 · Al-Monitor*

## Key points

- A Qatari Boeing 747 gifted to the U.S. will join the Air Force One fleet by July 4.
- L3Harris is retrofitting the Qatari 747 with security, communications, and missile defense upgrades.
- Official Air Force One replacement jets are delayed until mid-2028, four years behind schedule.
- In December, the Air Force bought two ex-Lufthansa 747-8is for training and spare parts purposes.
- A new red, white, dark blue, and gold paint scheme will be used for future Air Force executive jets.

**Companies:** Boeing, L3Harris
**Countries:** United States, Qatar

[Read the full story on Al-Monitor](https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2026/05/exclusive-us-aims-fourth-july-deploy-qatar-gifted-jet-air-force-one)

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