AF1 has two extensive kitchens that are equipped with cooking facilities to feed a 100 people. The kitchens aren’t the mini size galleys you see on your regular passenger plane but spacious enough for cooks to do some regular cooking for the president and guests.
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Among facts of Air Force One, Coors Beer which was Gerald Ford’s favorite wasn’t available throughout the US. It was only available in 11 states. When Ford traveled on AF 1, he would make his entire staff load Coors beer onto the plane. His staff would procure the beer from states like Colorado while flying back to the Whitehouse in Washington DC.
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During the cold war of the fifties, US security was high on the agenda of the CIA. Director Allen Dulles converted the aircraft into a spy plane in 1959 on a temporary basis. The plane was fitted with secret spy cameras in the wheel wells. These were extremely powerful enough to work from 29,000 feet where they could easily read the license plate of a car.
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In a terrorist attack similar to 9/11, Air Force one has the entire necessary infrastructure to work as a command center in the air. If the White House is compromised or not safe, the President can take off in Air Force one and operate from there.
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Air Force one is always top priority which is why it is given preference over other air traffic. When AF1 takes off or is about to land, all air traffic is halted so the pilots don’t really need to bother about such things. AF1 doesn’t really interfere with commercial air traffic because it usually takes off and lands from military air bases in the US.
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