The Air Force estimates it will cost less than $400 million to modify a luxury aircraft gifted from the Qatari government into President Donald Trump’s flying command center, according to the service’s top civilian official.

That projection is far less than the $1 billion congressional democrats and some aviation experts have said would be required to harden the plane’s defenses and install the countermeasures, encrypted communications and other capabilities needed to fulfill the Air Force One mission.

Air Force Secretary Troy Meink said Thursday in a House Armed Services Committee hearing that the assumptions some are making about the modification costs include things like training and buying spare parts — expenses the service has already accounted for through its broader VC-25B presi

See Full Page