First "Air Force One" visits Mount Pleasant Monday

The Columbine II has been restored to the point of being airworthy and was tested in flight for the first time in many years on Saturday

The Columbine II  a Lockheed VC-121A-LO Constellation that was the first aircraft ever designated "Air Force One", will stop over at the Mount Pleasant Regional Airport Monday afternoon.

The Columbine II will leave the Marana Airport in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona Monday morning and stay overnight, hosted by the Mid-America Flight Museum, before continuing on to the airport in Bridgewater, Virginia, Tuesday morning. The historic aircraft (military serial number 48-0610, Lockheed Model 749-79-36) is the only Presidential aircraft ever sold to a private party.

It was named Columbine II in honor of the State Flower of Colorado, First Mamie Mamie Eisenhower's birthplace.

Early in 1953 it was converted by the Air Force for use by President-elect Dwight D. Eisenhower. That same year, with President Eisenhower on board, air traffic control accidentally put Air Force flight 8610 in the same airspace over New York City as Eastern Airlines flight 8610, prompting the adoption of the unique call sign Air Force One whenever the President was on board any aircraft.

After being replaced, Columbine II continued in service with the United States Air Force until retired to Davis–Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona, the so-called "boneyard" for retired military aircraft, during the late 1960s. It was later sold as part of a package lot  an Idaho businessman who owned a crop-dusting service and was flown in 1990 its present location at Marana Airport, Arizona, where it was used for spare parts.

The aircraft owner was considering cutting the aircraft up as scrap, when the Smithsonian Institution, during a research project, contacted the owner and informed him that 48-610 was, in fact, a former presidential aircraft. The owner then, in the hope of finding a new owner willing to display the aircraft, attempted to sell the plane at auction, but it was not sold. The current owner of Columbine II is looking for a permanent home for the aircraft with the ability to continue its restoration.

The Columbine II has been restored to the point of being airworthy and was tested in flight for the first time in masy years on Saturday. It will depart for Mount Pleasant at 8:00 a.m. Monday morning with Mid-America Flight Museum owner Scott Glover on board, as well as staff members of Dynamic Aviation, which is conducting the restoration. It is estimated to reach Mount Pleasant Regional Airport between 3 and 4 p.m.

The Columbine II will remain overnight in Mount Pleasant and depart for Bridgewater, Virginia, Tuesday morning, where the Dynamic Aviation team will complete the restoration.