> Also, some have posited that buying aircraft that were already built to standard airline specifications may end up actually costing more to convert them into

> Also, some have posited that buying aircraft that were already built to standard airline specifications may end up actually costing more to convert them into VC-25Bs compared to just ordering new aircraft as some modifications and provisions for certain unique systems, electromagnetic hardening, and wiring could not have been made on the production line and now they need to be retrofitted. Considering that a brand new 747-8i costs roughly $400M, the aircraft themselves were never a massive part of the overall program's cost. It is amazing to me that the planes are under a fifth of the cost of the project: over $5 billion. This project is more expensive than the stupidly (expensive, 2x over budget) WTC Path Station!