Trump used secret decoy flight after NATO summit amid Iran threat

Donald Trump was reportedly moved to a covert military aircraft after the NATO summit in Ankara. The alleged decoy operation has intensified questions over threats from Iran and presidential security.

In Short

• Washington Post said reporters were misled about Trump's return flight
• An Iranian assassination threat reportedly triggered extraordinary security measures during departure
• Trump allegedly switched aircraft via catering truck at Ankara airport

US President Donald Trump secretly left last month’s NATO summit in Ankara on an alternate military aircraft while the White House made it appear that he was travelling on Air Force One, according to a Washington Post report published on Monday.

The newspaper said the operation was prompted by an Iranian assassination threat against Trump. It reported that journalists and some White House staff members were led to believe they were on the same plane as the president as he began his journey back to Washington from the annual meeting of NATO leaders. The Associated Press said it had not independently confirmed the report.

The Post said it reviewed material related to the operation and cited a US official familiar with it and another person with knowledge of the president’s travel. Trump had flown to the summit in a newly retrofitted jet gifted by Qatar and painted red, white and navy blue. But before leaving Trkiye, he said he would travel part of the way home on an older baby blue Air Force One aircraft instead.

At the time, Trump said the new luxury jet was being flown out ahead of his departure from Ankara so that US troops based in eastern England could see the new Air Force One. In Ankara, he boarded the older Air Force One in full view of television cameras before it flew to Royal Air Force Mildenhall in the UK.

According to the Post, however, Trump was moved minutes later from that aircraft to a smaller Air Force C-32A using an airport catering truck normally used to load meals and supplies. He then flew to Mildenhall on that aircraft. The report said Trump and several aides used the catering truck to leave the plane without being seen by people not involved in the operation. The truck was raised with hydraulics and positioned at a door on the opposite side of Air Force One’s main entrance. Reporters who believed they were travelling with Trump were told to lower their window shades before take-off.

After reaching Mildenhall, photographers captured Trump getting off the presidential aircraft, suggesting he had reboarded Air Force One out of sight of the journalists travelling with him. After the brief stop at the base, he boarded the new Air Force One to fly the rest of the way to Washington. During an exchange with reporters on board, Trump was asked if there had been any credible threats to Air Force One from Iran. “Well, I have a threat all the time. I’m number one on their list before you,” he said. He then added to the travelling reporters, “But if I go, you go.”

The White House did not directly answer questions about the report of a secret operation involving a third aircraft or the alleged effort to make it appear that Trump was on the older Air Force One. White House communications director Steven Cheung said, “As the President has said recently, there are many enemies of America who have their sights on him, and we use every tool at our disposal to address those threats.” The US Secret Service declined to comment, while the Air Force referred questions to the White House.

Questions had already been raised about the safety of the Qatari-gifted aircraft. While Trump was in Trkiye, the US military carried out a series of major strikes in Iran in retaliation for attacks on merchant shipping in the region. The New York Times and CBS News had reported last month that intelligence officials were concerned about a possible attack on the president or his aircraft, leading to extra precautions and a decision not to use the newly inducted plane for the first part of the return journey from Ankara. The switch had led to questions over the aircraft’s security, and Trump later said it would undergo further upgrades. On Monday, Cheung said the plane was “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.”

The Post report added a new layer to concerns among US security officials during the ongoing conflict with Iran. Paul Eckloff, a former Secret Service special agent, said the unusual move could point either to actionable intelligence or to extra caution because of tensions in the region linked to the wars in Iran and Ukraine. “I would not say unprecedented, but it is an unusual occurrence,” Eckloff told AP. Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal called for a congressional investigation, saying on CNN, “It is unprecedented and it is surreal,” and calling the episode “downright scary.” Overall, the report described an elaborate effort to conceal Trump’s travel plans after the NATO summit amid security concerns linked to Iran.

With PTI Inputs

- Ends