Boeing VC-25 it would have appeared when Reagan was president; President and Nancy Reagan's Air Force One jackets were placed on the chairs to "make them feel at home". A specially designed hydraulic lifter (similar to the type used by airline catering) with the presidential seal affixed to the sides lifts the casket up to the portside aft door to enter the VC-25A. The tradition of placing the caskets in the passenger cabin dates back to the assassination of John F. Kennedy, when the crew did not want the president's body placed in the cargo hold, and again during the state funeral
Boeing VC-25 of Lyndon B. Johnson. The current VC-25A aircraft are aging and have become less cost-effective to operate. The USAF Air Mobility Command investigated possible replacements, with early press coverage suggesting that the USAF would consider the Boeing 747-8 and the Airbus A380. On January 7, 2009, Air Force Materiel Command issued a new Sources Sought notice for a replacement aircraft to enter service by 2017 with an additional two aircraft to follow in 2019 and 2021. On 28 January 2009, EADS North America representing EADS and its Airbus division confirmed it would not respond to the US Air Force notice,