From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, July 16, 2024
‘Wing of Zion,’ Israel’s long-delayed ‘Air Force One,’ takes off for US with equipment ahead of PM’s visit
Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter
Israel’s new “Air Force One” — dubbed Wing of Zion — takes off from the Nevatim Airbase for the US in its first official flight, Kan news reports.
The flight is meant to bring equipment and some security personnel over ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress and meeting with US President Joe Biden next week.
The Prime Minister’s Office was surprised to discover recently that the plane could only take 60 passengers, far less than the expected complement of aides, guards, and journalists, according to Kan.
Sources in the PMO blamed Israel Aerospace Industries for constructing a plane that doesn’t meet its needs, who said in response to Kan that “the plane will fly at the set time with maximum safety, and is ready for the mission after it passed all the readiness tests from A to Z.”
The flight costs more than $200,000.
The plane, a reconfigured and upgraded Boeing 767, has been caught in political fighting in Israel for a number of years, with Netanyahu and his supporters arguing that it is a necessary safety measure, and detractors calling it a waste of taxpayer money and a symbol of corruption.
The Times of Israel Community.