American Notes THE PRESIDENCY

Twenty months behind schedule and costing taxpayers $133 million, the latest version of Air Force One was shown off last week. "If the President wants to go anywhere, and I mean anywhere, this ship is ready,"says an Air Force spokesman.

Demands that the Boeing 747 be equipped with the latest security gizmos delayed delivery of the gleaming blue-and-white plane. It carries 19 television sets and more than 80 telephones. Communications gear will permit the President to grab information from satellites or to communicate with submarine commanders. The plane (the second one will be ready next June) replaces the Boeing 707s in use since 1962. The President's quarters include an office that converts to a medical emergency room and a dining room. It flies 7,000 miles nonstop and, with aerial refueling, can stay aloft nearly three days.