PM's US trip: 'Old Faithful Betty' breakdown not ideal, but unclear when Boeing 757 will be replaced, Defence Minister says

The Defence Minister says the situation with a problem-plagued Air Force 757 is far from ideal.

A Boeing 757 carrying a delegation with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern broke down in Washington DC yesterday.

"It is disappointing that it's broken down," Defence Minister Peeni Henare said today. "It's got a history of those kinds of malfunctions but we're working on getting it right."

Henare said eventually the plane, nicknamed Old Faithful Betty, would have to be replaced.

"That's something that we're going to have to decide as a Cabinet."

The RNZAF Boeing that has broken down in Washington, DC. Photo / Jason Walls

The PM's delegation has been travelling on the Boeing, which visited multiple cities including San Francisco and Seattle.

Three years ago, one of the Defence Force Boeings broke down in Melbourne and another 757 sent to transport stranded people broke down about one day later.

Ron Mark, who was Defence Minister at the time, said the plane was on seriously borrowed time but replacing it was still a way off.

"We could fix the problem overnight if someone gave me a billion dollars or so but right now it's not the priority," Mark told the Herald in 2019.

The Air Force received two of the planes in 2003.

It said the Boeings could carry personnel and equipment globally in support of operations and deployments.

The aircraft were modified in 2007 and were frequently used to transport VIPs and ministerial and trade missions around the world.