Was that Air Force One at Gulfport-Biloxi International? Yes — and no — and here’s why
Heads turned Friday when a plane with “United States of America” on the side landed at Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport.
“They were just doing some training exercises,” said Chaille Munn, director of marketing at the airport, “and they just happened to touch down here.”
She doesn’t think the airport had any advance notice that such a prestigious plane would be landing.
An airplane can only be called Air Force One if the U.S. president is a passenger. Planes of this size are used to transport the vice president of other senior official.
“There were no heads of state on board,” she said.
Michael Swanson, operations supervisor at the airport, snapped photos of the C32 plane as it landed and taxied.
The airport frequently hosted Air Force One after Hurricane Katrina, when President George W. Bush touched down several times to see the progress being made on the Coast.
President Barack Obama visited the Coast in 2010, during the Gulf oil spill.
President Donald Trump was at the Coast Coliseum in Biloxi in 2018 at a rally for Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith. Several years before, he considered building a casino in Gulfport.
In March 2023, President Biden made his first visit to Mississippi to see the tornado damage at Rolling Fork. He didn’t travel to the Coast to see the hurricane damage that occurred at the same time in Moss Point.
His plane did visit the Coast once when it was parked at the Gulfport Airport while Biden was visiting New Orleans.
Following this test run, it’s possible Air Force One will land in South Mississippi during the campaign for the November election.
This story was originally published April 30, 2024 at 2:57 PM.
