Jaunted

Campaign planes are notoriously filthy places, where poor hygiene, recycled air, and threadbare immune systems combine to create flying tubes of contagion.

Planes generally must go back to their operators in the same condition they arrived. In 2008, that presented a problem for Obama, who had installed a phone system into his 757 that had to be removed through a hole cut in the fuselage, [Air Charter Team president] Tasler says.

A small squadron of private aircraft has whisked Romney across the country during his long presidential candidacy, including a Hawker 400, a Learjet 35, a Cessna (TXT) Citation, and an Embraer (ERJ) Phenom 300, according to Think Progress. (It was one of these that Ann Romney nicknamed “Hair Force One” last December.)

What BusinessWeek fails to mention is that the Romney campaign flew more than just MD-83 tail number N949NS; vice-presidential candidate Paul Ryan had to get around as well and so he flew an additional chartered plane, a DC-9 with tail number N215US. That too will have to get the Febreze and carpet cleaner treatment before you'll see it return to the tarmac, perhaps toting your favorite band instead of a political entourage.

One of the oddest photos from the election: Romney serving McDonalds onboard his jet

[Photo: Yahoo Politics & Drewski2112]