C-40 Clipper
ICAO B737The military Boeing 737, carrying cargo, crews and cabinet members. Live C-40 Clipper positions.
Flying right now
Live · 30sAirframe
- Manufacturer
- Boeing
- Role
- Transport and government travel
- Class
- L2J — Landplane, 2 jet engines
- Crew
- Around 10
- First flight
- 1997
- In service
- 2001
Operators airborne
About the C-40 Clipper
The C-40 is a Boeing 737 in two rather different guises. The Navy's C-40A Clipper is a working freighter with a large cargo door, moving spares and people out to fleet units — it replaced the C-9 Skytrain and does unglamorous logistics.
The Air Force C-40B and C-40C are the other kind: configured for senior officials and combatant commanders, with communications fitted so the passenger can work in flight. Both share the airframe and both report as B737.
That designator covers every 737-700 and its Boeing Business Jet derivatives, so government aircraft from Kuwait, Australia, India and elsewhere appear here too.
Callsign prefixes
- CNV
- US Navy Convoy — the standard C-40A block
- SAM
- Special Air Mission — US Air Force C-40B and C
How to recognise it
- —A 737 with winglets and, on Navy aircraft, a large cargo door forward on the left side.
- —Navy Clippers wear grey or white with a blue cheatline; Air Force aircraft use the government white and blue.
- —No obvious military modification beyond the door — it is an airliner doing military work.
Common questions
+ What is the difference between the C-40A and C-40B?
Role. The Navy C-40A is a combi freighter with a cargo door, carrying pallets and passengers. The Air Force C-40B is a communications-equipped transport for senior officials.
+ Is the C-40 related to the P-8?
Both are built on the 737, but the P-8 is a far deeper conversion with a reinforced airframe, weapons bay and different wings. The C-40 is much closer to a standard airliner.
+ Why do foreign 737s appear here?
The B737 designator covers the whole 737-700 and Boeing Business Jet family, several of which are flown as government transports by other countries.