Inside Joe Biden’s First Trip Aboard Air Force One as President
President Joe Biden took his first flight aboard Air Force One since being inaugurated as the 46th president of the United States.
After serving 8 years as President Barack Obama’s VP, President Biden is no stranger to the presidential plane, but on Friday climbed aboard for the first time as POTUS. Pool reports, videos, and photographs provided a glimpse inside that first flight.
The trip had become the subject of some concocted controversy when the Associated Press and Fox News teamed up to falsely suggest that the President’s flight would be in violation of CDC travel guidelines, and the plane itself had already been the subject of multiple briefing room exchanges on whether or not Biden would keep Donald Trump’s color scheme (he will, for the foreseeable future).
As he departed the White House, pool cameras captured ABC News correspondent Karen Travers shouting to Biden “Why are you going to Delaware this weekend?”
He did not answer Travers, but would later reveal the purpose of his trip.
Biden then flew aboard Marine One, and then boarded the plane at Joint Base Andrews.
Pool reports from Seung Min Kim of The Washington Post fill in some details from the flight, and Biden’s arrival in Wilmington. For example, it seems a safe bet the new administration’s in-flight media diet differs from the previous:
AF1 landed at New Castle Air National Guard Base at 6:07 p.m. after a 25-minute, uneventful flight. Everybody on the flight was wearing masks. Yohannes Abraham came to the press cabin midway through the flight for a quick hello.
During the flight, the large television screen at the front of the plane that is visible from the press cabin had four channels playing at once, CNN visible among them.
Once on the ground, Biden revealed the reason for the trip, and his thoughts on the trip:
POTUS disembarked AF1 at 6:15 p.m., saluting as he reached the ground.
POTUS, holding a newspaper, came over briefly to talk to the press about his first trip on AF1 as president. He said “it was a great honor” and noted that he was reading a newspaper on the flight. Fuller quotes TK.
As for his plans this weekend, POTUS said he will “see my grandchildren and hang out with Jill” and noted that he still had some stuff to move from one house to the other house (presumably White House).
More comments from POTUS on his flight: “It’s a great plane …. it’s the same plane that we had as Vice President, only it’s much nicer.”
POTUS noted that this plane a “nice conference table, plenty of room for you all back in the back” (referring to the press).
He also told a brief story about this base: “You realize, they’ve used this air strip to practice landings for the 747 takeoffs for the president’s plane for a long time.” He notes that his home is five miles from the airport and says, referring to AF1, “Now I’m getting off that plane. It’s really kind of strange.”
Kim later added a Biden-esque detail from earlier in the trip:
Your not-eagle-eyed pooler couldn’t make this out earlier, but shortly after POTUS stepped off M1 at JBA and he was walking toward AF1, he was greeted by Colonel Carla Riner, Wing Commander, and handed her a challenge coin.
Watch video of President Biden’s departure via pool.
