Air Force seeks 737 MAX for VIP airlift

A scaled model of a Boeing 737 Max winglet at the company's exhibit chalet at the Farnborough International Air Show, on 23rd July 2026, in Farnborough, England. (Photo by Richard Baker / In Pictures via Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — The Air Force is shopping for a 737 MAX to boost its executive airlift fleet, seemingly marking the first time that planemaker Boeing’s beleaguered jetliner will be purchased for military missions.

After the fiscal 2026 National Defense Authorization Act authorized $250 million “to expand C-40 capabilities,” the Air Force intends to satisfy that requirement by buying a 737 MAX aircraft, a spokesperson for the Air Force’s Air Mobility Command told Breaking Defense. The C-40 is the Air Force’s term for earlier versions of the 737 modified for military executive airlift.

The spokesperson did not respond by press time when asked how much the procurement of the aircraft is expected to cost or its timeline for delivery. Aviation Week previously reported the Air Force’s plans to buy the MAX.

Boeing currently has several variants of the MAX in service, though the aircraft has had a troubled operational history. A pair of crashes in 2018 and 2019 prompted authorities to ground the narrowbody for over a year. A door plug subsequently fell off mid-flight from a 737 MAX in January 2024, once again sparking a crisis at Boeing over the aircraft and renewing regulatory scrutiny.

The aerospace giant is now trying to ramp up output of the MAX, a key source of cash flow. But that process, Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg said Wednesday , has been slower than expected.

The Air Mobility Command spokesperson did not specify which variant of the MAX the Air Force is seeking to buy, though Aviation Week noted that the command in July sought out 737-8 MAX “flight training services” in an industry solicitation . A Boeing spokesperson referred questions to the Air Force when asked about the service’s plans to procure the MAX.

The Air Force operates both the C-40 and C-32 for executive airlift, with the C-32 largely reserved for transporting “Top Five” officials — the vice president, first spouse, secretary of defense, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and secretary of state. The C-40 can also fulfill C-32 taskings, and demand for both aircraft has been high in recent years.

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Lawmakers previously rejected the Air Force’s bid to expand the C-40 fleet under the Biden administration, Breaking Defense previously reported . At the time, the Air Force said that the C-40 could help supplement a C-32 fleet that lacked the capacity to meet a sufficient number of Top Five travel requests.

The C-32’s baseline airframe, the 757, is no longer in production, leaving the 737 as the only US-made, commercially available narrowbody jetliner that can expand executive airlift capacity. Boeing would likely be expected to handle converting the MAX aircraft for military uses, which would entail steps like installing secure communications equipment and defensive countermeasures.

Valerie Insinna contributed to this report.

2026年7月23日，在英国范堡罗举行的范堡罗国际航展上，波音公司展位上展示着波音737 Max翼梢小翼的缩小模型。（图片由Richard Baker/In Pictures via Getty Images提供）

华盛顿——美国空军正在采购一架737 MAX飞机，以扩充其行政运输机队。这似乎标志着飞机制造商波音公司这款饱受争议的喷气式客机首次被用于军事任务。

据《防务新闻》报道，空军空中机动司令部发言人表示，在2026财年国防授权法案批准2.5亿美元“用于扩展C-40运输机的能力”后，空军计划通过购买一架737 MAX飞机来满足这一需求。C-40是空军对早期737机型的称呼，这些机型经过改装，专用于军事行政运输。

截至发稿时，发言人尚未回应有关采购该飞机预计成本或交付时间表的询问。《航空周刊》此前曾报道过空军购买MAX的计划。

波音公司目前运营着多种型号的737 MAX飞机，但该机型的运营历史可谓一波三折。2018年和2019年发生的两起坠机事故导致当局停飞该窄体客机一年多。随后，2024年1月，一架737 MAX飞机在飞行途中舱门塞脱落，再次引发波音公司内部关于该机型的危机，并招致监管机构的重新审查。

这家航空航天巨头目前正试图提高MAX机型的产量，MAX是其重要的现金流来源。但波音公司首席执行官凯利·奥特伯格周三表示，这一进程比预期要慢。

空军机动司令部发言人并未具体说明空军计划采购哪种型号的MAX飞机，但《航空周刊》指出，该司令部曾在7月份通过行业招标寻求737-8 MAX的“飞行训练服务”。当被问及空军采购MAX的计划时，波音公司发言人将问题转给了空军。

空军使用C-40和C-32两种飞机执行行政运输任务，其中C-32主要用于运送“五大要员”——副总统、第一夫人、国防部长、参谋长联席会议主席和国务卿。C-40也能执行C-32的部分任务，近年来这两种飞机的需求量都很高。

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据《防务新闻》此前报道，国会议员此前否决了空军在拜登政府时期扩充C-40机队的提议。当时，空军表示，C-40可以补充C-32机队，因为C-32机队运力不足，无法满足足够多的“五大”出行需求。

C-32 的基础机型 757 已停产，因此 737 成为唯一一款美国制造、可商用且能扩展公务机运力的窄体喷气式客机。波音公司很可能负责将 MAX 飞机改装为军用机型，这需要安装安全通信设备和防御性对抗措施等步骤。

Valerie Insinna 对本报道亦有贡献。