First Air Force One flies again for first time in decades

(KRON) — “Columbine II” became the first plane to use the call-sign “Air Force One” in 1953.

Now, it is flying again in Southern Arizona.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower used the plane. It flew out of an Arizona airport on Monday after restoration work, which will continue in Virginia.

The flight was a big test for the 1948 aircraft. Now, workers plan to restore vintage fixtures and leave it looking the way it did when it once carried the world’s most powerful leaders.

“Columbine II” was renamed Air Force One in 1953 when Eisenhower was president.CNN contributed to this report