Trump secretly left Turkey on military jet; ruse involved smuggling president in catering truck
by Jeff Mordock · The Washington TimesPresident Trump was secretly flown out of last month’s NATO summit in Turkey on a military jet instead of Air Force One, part of an elaborate ruse that included moving him in a catering container and making it appear as if he were on Air Force One due to a threat from Iran.
Mr. Trump had boarded an older version of Air Force One in Ankara, Turkey, but transferred to a smaller Air Force C-32A plane via a catering truck typically used to transport meals and food supplies, The Washington Post reported late Monday.
The president had left the summit amid renewed U.S. strikes on Iran after negotiations with Tehran had ground to a halt, impaling a temporary peace agreement. That had sparked an Iranian assassination threat against Mr. Trump.
Mr. Trump had flown to the summit in the new Qatari-gifted red, white and navy blue Air Force One. However, before he left Turkey, he said he would fly home on the older-model, baby blue Air Force One.
Journalists and White House officials who flew on the older-model plane were led to believe that they were on the same plane as Mr. Trump. However, once the president was on board the plane, he was smuggled off and shuttled to the Air Force C-32A in the airport catering truck.
Mr. Trump then flew the C-32A to Royal Air Force Mildenhall in the United Kingdom. It was there that the president, reporters and staffers boarded the newer-model Air Force One for the return trip to Washington.
The White House declined to comment on the operation, and Communications Director Steven Cheung issued a statement that did not directly address the plane switch.
“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,” he said in a statement.
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The Secret Service declined to comment and the Air Force referred all questions to the White House.
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Jeff Mordock
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