The new design marks a departure from the white and two-tone blue livery dating to President John F Kennedy's administration, and revives elements of former President Donald Trump's proposed red, white and blue scheme that was scrapped in 2022 after the Air Force determined darker colours could cause overheating issues.
The redesign will be applied to the VC-25B - the military designation for the Boeing 747-8i aircraft that will serve as Air Force One.
The Air Force One program involves converting two 747-8 aircraft into specialised jets equipped with advanced communications and defence systems to serve as the next generation of US presidential air transport.
That effort is four years behind schedule with delivery now expected in 2028.
.As a stopgap, the US government has tapped defence contractor L3Harris Technologies, to overhaul a Boeing 747 formerly used by the Qatari government for use as an interim Air Force One.
In 2025, the United States accepted a luxury Boeing 747 jetliner as a gift from Qatar. The White House asked the Air Force to rapidly upgrade the gift for use as Air Force One.
In addition, four modified Boeing 757-200s used to transport the vice president, cabinet members, members of Congress and other senior government officials will carry the new livery, the Air Force said.
The 757-200 aircraft will receive their new livery during regularly scheduled maintenance windows. One of those jets has already been repainted and should be delivered in the coming months, the Air Force said.
The Air Force did not provide details on how the new design addresses the thermal concerns that doomed Trump's previous paint proposal, which the Biden administration rejected after determining it "could drive additional engineering, time and cost".
