Obama switches to new plane after mechanical problem grounds Air Force One – The Washington Post

While President Obama was in Philadelphia on Sunday for a pre-election rally, Air Force One experienced a “minor mechanical problem,” the White House said. Obama traveled on the plane from Washington, D.C., to New Haven, Conn., then to Philadelphia, but it was replaced during his rally at Temple University with another C-32 aircraft, a modified…

While President Obama was in Philadelphia on Sunday for a pre-election rally, Air Force One experienced a “minor mechanical problem,” the White House said.

Obama traveled on the plane from Washington, D.C., to New Haven, Conn., then to Philadelphia, but it was replaced during his rally at Temple University with another C-32 aircraft, a modified version of the Boeing 757-200 planes the Air Force uses for the president’s travel.

via Obama switches to new plane after mechanical problem grounds Air Force One – The Washington Post.

The one time I’ve actually seen Air Force One it was actually one of the C-32s. George Bush flew into John Wayne Orange County airport. KSNA is much too small for a 747, so they used the C-32. What he didn’t do was fly into LA, then board a helicopter to fly to Orange County. Certain people following in his footsteps seem to love tying up traffic in LA.

My office overlooked the runway, so I got to see it arrive and depart. His motorcade went right by the office as well. I waved. Don’t think he waved back. I think traffic was disrupted for maybe 2 minutes, for maybe one mile.

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  1. Quartermaster

    I’m a bit surprised they didn’t take Bush in Los Alamitos AAF. It’s main runway is 8,000′ long and gives a bit more margin for a 757. I’d be a bit nervous launching a 737 from John Wayne.

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  2. xbradtc

    757 is about as big as you can get into KSNA, but they do it all the time. 737 is even easier.

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  3. ohengineer

    5700′ is pretty short.

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  4. ltfuzz

    Flew into John Wayne a lot in a 737. Noise abatement was a bitch, but it worked OK.

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