US: Boeing said to offer talks on Air Force One after Trump tweets

Boeing executives told officials on President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team that the cost of a new version of Air Force One could be lowered if the government agrees to reduce its requirements for the plane, people familiar with the discussions said. The company’s executives reached out to Trump’s staff after the Republican said on Twitter on Tuesday that plans for a new Air Force One should be cancelled because of "ridiculous" costs. The missive put in Trump’s sights both a plane that is one of the most visible symbols of the American presidency and a firm that is the nation’s largest exporter. “Boeing is building a brand new 747 Air Force One for future presidents, but costs are out of control, more than $4 billion,” Trump said in his tweet. “Cancel order!” The company is the latest to be singled out by Trump, who last week announced a deal with United Technologies to keep a US factory open instead of moving production to Mexico. The president-elect, who turned jobs and trade into defining issues of his campaign, tweeted about Boeing days after CEO Dennis Muilenburg called on him and Congress to ensure that US companies have the tools to compete in a global economy. Boeing rose 8 cents to $151.24 in New York. The company’s planes have been used to ferry presidents since 1943, when Franklin D. Roosevelt rode a Boeing 314 flying boat across the Atlantic for a wartime meeting with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. “We are currently under contract for $170m to help determine the capabilities of this complex military aircraft that serves the unique requirements of the President of the United States,” a Boeing spokesman said. “We look forward to working with the US Air Force on subsequent phases of the program allowing us to deliver the best plane for the president at the best value for the American taxpayer.” “This is what an Air Force One costs,” Richard Aboulafia, an aerospace analyst at Teal Group, said of Trump’s tweet. “There have been no cost overruns. The ability to fly the president during a war is fundamentally expensive... This is madness,” Aboulafia said of Trump’s tweet. “I think about the complications, for example, if the president and his staff had to run the nation on 9/11 and afterwards without an Air Force One and my mind is kind of scrambled on that.”<br/>