The Sad Story of the First Air Force One

(Photo credit: Daan Noske/Anefo)

Presidents Franklin Roosevelt and Truman had airplanes, but they didn’t use them much. Dwight Eisenhower was different. As a military general, he flew a lot, and he often used the president’s 1948 Lockheed C-121 Constellation. The plane was called the Columbine II. But an airport incident showed how confusing it was to use the plane’s military designation, 8610. That’s when the term “Air Force One” began to be used. Today, any plane carrying the president is called Air Force One.

(Photo credit: Fadamor)

But that first Air Force One was traded for another in 1954 and, after serving other purposes, was abandoned in the desert, where it sat rusting until 1970, when Mel Christler bought it for parts. Years later, he discovered the plane’s history and couldn’t scrap it. But he also couldn’t afford to restore it, so the Columbine II sat in a state of disrepair until 2014. But now it’s in the hands of a group that’s trying to restore it for posterity. Find out about the journey of the first Air Force One and when we can expect to see it for ourselves.