UPDATE 2 - Trump calls for new Air Force One order to be canceled

ADDS CHICAGO TRIBUNE ARTICLE

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) – President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday called for the U.S. to cancel an order for a new presidential aircraft, citing alleged cost overruns.

"Boeing is building a brand new 747 Air Force One for future presidents, but costs are out of control, more than $4 billion. Cancel order!" Trump wrote on Twitter in an early morning post, but did not disclose how he came up with the $4 billion figure.

The comments sent Boeing's stock downwards, falling nearly half a percent in trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

What prompted Trump's statement is unclear but an article published in the Chicago Tribune newspaper hours prior said Boeing's leadership "must cringe every time President-elect Donald Trump riffs on foreign policy, especially when it comes to dealing with China".

It said that while CEO Dennis Muilenburg has been tempered in his comments about the incoming administration, his company is facing increasing competition from international competitors, including China, and is weary of a potential trade war.

"Muilenburg suggests the Trump team, and Congress, back off from the 2016 anti-trade rhetoric and perceived threats to punish other countries with higher tariffs or fees," according to the article, written by the Tribune's Robert Reed.

"Boeing risks retaliation and facing greater state-backed overseas competition," it added.

The U.S. contracted with the aerospace giant to build at least two new presidential 747s for delivery by 2024.

Air Force One hosts a wide array of advanced electronics and defensive measures to ensure the safety of the president, including a special electronics system designed to guard against an electromagnetic pulse and thermo-radiation shields to protect against the detonation of a nuclear weapon.

"We are currently under contract for $170 million to help determine the capabilities of these complex military aircraft that serve the unique requirements of the President of the United States," Boeing said in a statement.

The company said it looks forward to working with the Air Force on "subsequent phases" of the presidential aircraft's development in order " to deliver the best planes for the President at the best value for the American taxpayer".

A Boeing official told Anadolu Agency the company does not know where Trump got the estimate, and does not have one of its own as the Pentagon has yet to finalize which systems will be featured on the new planes.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters aboard the presidential aircraft, "Some of the statistics that have been, uh cited [by Trump], shall we say, don't appear to reflect the nature of the financial agreement between Boeing and the Department of Defense."

Earnest said the contract would ensure future presidents have a "modern presidential aircraft".