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Why Do Network People Misspeak "Air Force 1"?

AbrahamJSimpson said:
The AP has it exactly right. In common use, people refer to the plane(s) as Air Force One. They don’t get into minutiae about call signs. Within the Air Force it has more meaning, but my Air Force officer uncle also called the plane Air Force One.

Everyone who isn’t being rediculously arcane knows what it means, as recognized by the style guide.
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My point was that JOURNALISTS should know the correct designations and differences between. An Air Force officer certainly should as well.
 
landtuna said:
In that context the library is describing the actual aircraft Reagan flew upon so when he was aboard its call sign was "Air Force One". The actual aircraft is otherwise called by its tail number as are all other civilian aircraft.

If I had written that article for the library I would have called the aircraft what it actually was, a 747, and specified it was known as "Air Force One when carrying the president.
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I would too. But they, the experts, didn't.
 
landtuna said:
My point was that JOURNALISTS should know the correct designations and differences between. An Air Force officer certainly should as well.
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Like journalists who follow AP style? The one that says it is correct in common usahe? Lots of us, including said uncle, fully understand the down-in-the-weeds distinction. We just don’t feel compelled to be “that guy” who rants about something so inconsequential. My uncle probably could have recited every regulation forward, backward and sideways in his sleep. He still called the plane what everyone else calls it.

Was there any real confusion about what it meant when it’s stated that Air Force One transported President Bush’s casket? Does anyone, who isn’t just looking for something to kvetch about, really care what the call sign was on said flight? Nope. That’s what common useage is all about.
 
Air Force 1 is any fixed wing aircraft current POTUS is aboard, usually one of 2 specialty 747-200B's (VC-25A's) SAM 28000 or SAM 29000 iirc

The reason for Air Traffic Controls use of Air Force 1 goes back to a 1953 incident where Eisenhower's plane ( Air Force 8610) and a commercial airliner (Eastern 8610) were being handled by the same center ( Air Traffic Controllers) and both aircraft had the same call sign.... not a good thing when you are responding to the wrong directives from ATC meant for another plane.... bad things happen, it leads to runway incursions and planes falling out of the sky...



( I know TMI, but besides being a former radio guy, I am a licensed Part 61 Private Pilot and a Part 107 Commercial Drone Pilot)

IMHO it would have been nice when they were bringing the casket and family from Houston to Joint Base Andrews if they had opened up the taps and done a trip to Kennebunk, it would have been an extra 2 to 2.5 hours of flight time, but AF1 can fly just shy of breaking to sound barrier and well above normal commercial air traffic... but they kind if made up for it by doing a 2000' circle around College Station in the way back to Houston.

Where were all the "aviation experts"? Isn't Sullenberger working for CBS in that capacity?
 
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landtuna said:
Dunno, but the network I heard all the misinformation on was ABC.
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Wolf Blitzer, on the "Fake News Network," explained the proper use of the term Air Force One, and why it's not supposed to be used unless the sitting President is on board the plane.
 
MRBIboredop said:
The reason for Air Traffic Controls use of Air Force 1 goes back to a 1953 incident where Eisenhower's plane ( Air Force 8610) and a commercial airliner (Eastern 8610) were being handled by the same center ( Air Traffic Controllers) and both aircraft had the same call sign.... not a good thing when you are responding to the wrong directives from ATC meant for another plane.... bad things happen, it leads to runway incursions and planes falling out of the sky...
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Interesting story. I am assuming that aircraft was one of several Lockheed Constellations used by Eisenhower and possibly the most beautiful aircraft ever built. I had a chance to see it several years ago when it was a resident of the Pima Air Museum in Tucson, AZ. It is now somewhere back east being refurbished and yes, it was flown back there. The Old Girl is as graceful as ever.
 
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