The Royal Australian Air Force (ASY, Richmond, QL) is readying to take delivery of two B737-8(BBJ)s to replace its two B737-700(BBJ)s used to fly around senior politicians and assorted other dignitaries.

The first replacement aircraft, A62-001 (msn 67959), operated a series of test flights around Dallas, Texas, for much of June before ferrying to Camp Springs via Warner Robins on July 1. ch-aviation contacted the Australian Defence Force for details of its ferry flights and introduction into service. The second B737-8(BBJ), currently N787BJ (msn 67960), is not yet delivered.

Following cabin completion at Basel/Mulhouse/Freiburg, CH, the two VIP aircraft will be housed with the Royal Australian Air Force 34 Squadron at Canberra's Fairbairn RAAF base. The replacement of the BBJs will mark the renewal of the entire VIP fleet, with three Bombardier Challenger CL-604s replaced by three Falcon 7Xs in 2019. The leases on the existing B737-700BBJs, which have had some reliability issues, expire this year.

The Australian government initially planned to spend AUD371 million Australian dollars (USD246.6 million) to lease the aircraft for 12 years through the National Australia Bank, which won the procurement contract in 2021. However, due to foreign exchange fluctuations, the cost had blown out to AUD411 million (USD273.2 million) by early 2024 and was flagged to top AUD550 million (USD365.6 million) by the end of the lease period, leading to a decision to buy the two aircraft.