A little more:
http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/...orld.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=gplus
"On the communication side, the aircraft will include equipment to send and receive encrypted communications to anywhere in the world.
"The presidential aircraft is one of the most visible symbols of the United States of America and the office of the president of the United States," said Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James in a statement. "The Boeing 747-8 is the only aircraft manufactured in the United States (that), when fully missionized, meets the necessary capabilities established to execute the presidential support mission."
Everything about the new planes will be focused on two things: Protecting the president while in the air, and keeping him or her in touch with global leaders.
"What Air Force One is really about is survivability and communications," said
Richard Aboulafia, aerospace analyst for the Teal Group, outside Washington, D.C.
Survivability will include a variety of systems aboard the plane to ward off potential attacks.
These include shielding against an electromagnetic pulse, the burst of energy from a nuclear detonation that can disable electronics and communications, said
Loren Thomson, military analyst for the Lexington Institute, outside Washington, D.C.
In addition, the aircraft probably will include more specific defense capabilities, including the ability to project a beam of infrared light to confuse any heat seeking missiles, said
Hans Weber, president of aerospace analyst Tecop International Inc., in San Diego.
"There will be a sophisticated array of defense systems against missiles on board," he said.
The aircraft probably will have extensive fire-fighting equipment, including nitrogen in the fuel tanks to prevent fires in case a tank is hit, Weber said.
"It will have chaff to confuse radar, flares to distract heat seeking missiles, it will probably have a laser system, to prevent heat seeking systems from locking onto the aircraft," he said.
The aircraft will also be equipped to keep flying even in the event of major system failure, which is the point of having the four engines.
"Boeing builds redundancy into all controls on 747," Thomson said. "If it's Air Force One, it will have multiple redundancies, in hydraulics, electronics and other systems."