President Donald Trump was finally forced to admit that the $400 million plane given to him by Qatar to use as Air Force One is not as secure as the older models he has repeatedly criticized.
The president flew on the new plane—which the Air Force has spent more than $300 million retrofitting—to this month’s NATO summit in Turkey, but returned home on an older jet at the Secret Service’s urging.
The New York Times reported soon after that the plane lacked an anti-missile defense system, but Trump nevertheless decided to return from Sunday’s World Cup final on the newer plane.
During a press gaggle on the tarmac on Sunday, the president cut off a reporter who was trying to ask why he was flying on a plane that was missing crucial defense systems.
“Well, it has a lot, and you know it has a lot of capability,” he said. “But as I understand it, in about a month or so they’re going to send it to have it be maxed out. So, they’re going to be sending it, and they’ll have it maxed out. It’ll take about a month.”
His comment seemed to confirm reporting from the Times and other outlets that Qatar’s golden gift was not as secure as the Cold War-era Air Force One models, which the president has complained are outdated.
That reporting led the White House to launch an internal investigation to hunt down the source of the leak and to take the extraordinary step of subpoenaing the Times’ reporters to hand over their sources.
Reached for comment, the White House declined to say what specific upgrades were planned or how much they were projected to cost.
“The new Air Force One is perfectly safe for the president’s travels, but will receive additional upgrades and enhancements in the fall which will take approximately one month to complete. During that time, the president will fly on the old Air Force One,” press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement.
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung previously said the new Air Force One 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 president had also insisted that he ditched the new plane after the NATO summit so that the members of the military could tour it.
Air Force One is the call sign for whatever plane the president is flying.
Boeing’s custom-built models are designed to be a flying Oval Office with anti-missile defenses, hardened wiring to protect from electromagnetic pulses emitted during a nuclear strike, mid-air refueling capabilities, and an on-board medical suite for treating the president in case of an emergency.
The administration has insisted the new plane is a “bridge” between the aging aircraft that have served as Air Force One for the past 36 years and two new aircraft expected to be delivered in 2028, several years behind schedule.
Soon after taking office, Trump toured the plane and demanded the Air Force rush through a renovation job so he could use it for the remainder of his second term.
He also said he plans to keep the plane for his presidential library after he leaves office, even though, by law, Congress must sign off on presidential gifts.
It has plush carpets, lie-flat seats, wood paneling, and a presidential seal on the seat belts, the Associated Press reported after the president took his maiden flight on the aircraft on July 1.
At the time, experts told the outlet the plane looked like a “domestic-only model” since it was missing some of the countermeasure systems and communications antennas of the outgoing jets.
