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Through the course of our country’s history many things have changed such as
the presidents and their form of transportation. Civilization has broadened the
types transportation through the decades. The use of transportation has
furthered our country’s ability to communicate with each other and many other
countries. The president’s travel started out with an uncomfortable horsedrawn
carriage and has escalated to a giant Boeing 747 jumbo jet with all the
amenities of the White House. Today the only conflict with the president’s
transportation is the price. From President Washington all the way to President
McKinley, the president was free to come and go as he pleased because there were
no secret service agents. Since the nation’s poor roads made for long
uncomfortable trips, the president hardly ever went on long excursions away from
Washington. When George Washington had to make long trips, he rode in a closed
carriage, pulled by a team of fast horses, which were exchanged on each leg of
the trip. Andrew Jackson was criticized for riding in elegant carriages which
made people feel that he was forgetting the American ideals. The use of horses
led to the death of William Henry Harrison during his inauguration.
He was given
a nice stagecoach to ride in, but he chose to ride on his favorite horse. He
rode to the capitol in the cold weather and gave a two hour inaugural address
and through this, he picked up pneumonia and died. Harrison was also the first
president to ride a train, although he never knew it! He was transported to his
final burial on the rail! It was not until Howard Taft’s administration that
money was appointed for presidential transportation. In 1833 the railroad
stretched a total of a 135 miles, and Andrew Jackson was the first living
president to ride a train. Once Jackson left office there was a total of 1,300
miles of railroad operation. Abraham Lincoln was for the expansion of the
railroad. Lincoln had a 42 foot long car but he was reluctant to use it because
people thought of him as a humble person. Franklin Roosevelt had a train car
named the Magellan which had accommodations for ten. The Magellan’s biggest
asset was its safety. The Magellan had steel roofs, side panels, and the bottom
of the car was protected by a metal shield. It was believed that it could
withstand small bombs and grenades. The windows to the Magellan were very thick
which, in turn, could stop bullets. President Roosevelt spent a lot of time
traveling on it, because it could only go 30 miles per hour. He traveled In
excess of 60,000 miles. When Truman was president, his train could speed up to
105 miles per hour, but he asked the engineer to slow it to 80 miles per hour.
One mode of travel that never became popular was the presidential yachts.
Many
people were angry to see luxury beyond what they thought should be enjoyed by an
American president. There was a fleet of yachts, and none of them were for
travel. They were just for rest and relaxation. Jimmy Carter later took the
current yacht called the Sequoia and put it on the auction block. During the
early 1900’s the automobile was starting to be more frequently used but only in
large cities. Even though President McKinley had used a horse less carriage, it
would still be another 10 years before the White House would have a garage full
of presidential cars. It was during William Howard Taft’s presidency when a
budget was set aside for transportation ($25,000). The first presidential car
was a model “M” touring car and was used for Taft (Siuru-25). The final
inauguration for a president riding in a horsedrawn carriage was Woodrow Wilson,
and the first in a car was Warren Harding. The first flight by a president
occurred in 1943, a year and one month before the U.S. entered World War Two,
when Franklin Roosevelt traveled to Casablanca to meet Winston Churchill. It was
Roosevelt’s second flight because he had flown in a plane made by the Wright
Brothers which stood in the air for no more then 2 minute (Siuru, 137). The
plane which he flew to Casablanca was a Pan Am Clipper. Roosevelt would have
taken a naval ship but the waters were too hostile.
The trip took 3 full days,
had 3 stops, spent 90 hours of traveling in the air and covered a total of 17,00
miles (Film). Roosevelt got his own plane called the Liberator Express which was
nicknamed “Guess Where 2”, but he never flew in it. Harry Truman’s plane was
named the Independence because it was put into service on Independence Day and
also his hometown was Independence, Missouri. Truman’s plane could fly at 350
miles per hour, and it also had the newest aircraft innovations. One time
President Truman was flying to Missouri and his plane’s identification name was
Air Force-610. Another plane in the air at that time was identified as
Eastern-610. The air traffic controller was calling them both by just 610, but
he didn’t know there were two planes with the same number! This could have led
to a big accident. From then on whenever the pilots were flying the President
the plane would be known as Air Force One. Dwight D. Eisenhower’s plane was
named Columbine Two because his wife was from Colorado, and it is also the state
flower. Ike would be the first president to use a jet powered airplane to travel
to England, France, West Germany, and 11 other nations in Europe. The
presidential airplane finally reached the jet age in 1962 with a Boeing 707.
Jackie Kennedy gave it the colors which it proudly sports today. She also wanted
to have “United States Of America” printed on both sides of the plane. The tail
number was 26,000 which both Kennedys wanted. The biggest decision made by a
president on 26,000 was President Kennedy rejecting of the Secret Service idea
to put a bubble bullet proof top on the parade car when he was going to arrive
in Dallas, Texas on that fateful day.
Air Force One got the dubious honor of
hosting a unwanted inauguration for Lyndon B. Johnson. Mrs. Kennedy had told Air
Force One’s pilots that Jack felt safer on that plane then anywhere in the
world. She asked if they could fly over the cemetery when Jack was being buried
they obliged. (Elliot Sluhan, film) Air Force One has been successfully used for
many historical events. President Johnson flew to Australia to be at Prime
Minister Holt’s funeral and from there he flew to Pakistan and also saw the Pope
in Rome. During Nixon’s presidency, he used the Boeing 26000 to go to the
People’s Republic of China, as well as his trip to the former USSR a few months
later. Nixon arranged for Henry Kissinger to secretly go and meet with the North
Vietnamese. Air Force One was flying and losing hydraulic fluid and therefore
the plane had to land immediately in Frankfort. The Vietnamese had said if there
was any publicity, they would break off negotiations. An associate for the
President asked the French Prime Minister if he could use his plane, and he
agreed so Kissinger was able to complete his assignment (Film) . When Nixon was
flying back to California on Air Force One after he had just resigned, Gerald
Ford was being sworn in as President. Once President Ford said “So help me God”,
the plane which Richard Nixon was flying on was no longer Air Force One but Sam
27,000. The Secret Service decided to keep the suitcase with all the nuclear
codes in the White House instead of being flown with the recently resigned
president. Presidents Ford, Carter, and Reagan all used the Boeing 707. Carter
decided to get rid of all the amenities on the plane such as free cigarettes,
expensive blankets, and many other items.
President Carter worked hard to
release the 52 hostages in Iran and when Reagan’s presidency started, the
hostages were released and both Carter and Reagan flew out to meet them. Just
recently the Boeing 707 has been retired. It had been in service for 35 years,
it was getting too expensive to maintain, and Vice President Gore only flew it
occasionally. (Associated Press.) The newest Air Force One is a Boeing 747-200
jumbo jet which was released in 1990 during President Bush’s term. Peter Lisagor
said “We ruined that presidency when we gave him that jet.” (Julia Cox,
Internet) The plane is 231 feet long and six stories tall. There is also 4,000
square feet of room. Some call it the “Flying Oval Office” and “Angel” since it
has all the amenities of the White House. The plane is accommodated with a
conference/dining room, living quarters, an office area for senior staff
members, and a medical facility. Air Force One has unlimited range due to the
fact that it can refuel in flight. Because of this the plane carries 2000 meals,
has 85 secure phones, and a 26 member crew. The only thing wrong with Air Force
One is the price. It costs $36,000 per flying hour and the fuel bill is $2,800
every hour. (Julia Cox, Internet) The Presidents have been mobile in some
fashion throughout the history of our country. They used whatever mode of
transportation they had at that time and got to experience the transportation of
the future. When the use of the plane started, it increased our diplomatic
contact with other countries. Air Force One stands as a trade mark for what so
many people want such as being “free”, and living in a democratic government.
Presidential transportation has indeed increased the president’s ability to
communicate within the country and improve our relations with other countries.
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