President Donald Trump’s press secretary made an off-the-cuff joke about a Qatari jet as Air Force One was forced to return to America mid-air on Tuesday night.
Trump’s trip to Switzerland was delayed due to an electrical fault that caused the flight to turn around less than an hour after departure. According to the White House press pool, Karoline Leavitt said at the time that a Qatari jet sounded “much better” than Air Force One after.
Media on the flight said the lights in the press cabin went out briefly after takeoff, with no explanation offered.
The White House explained the incident as a “minor electrical issue” in a statement swiftly afterwards, adding that the president would board a separate flight.
“After takeoff, the AF1 crew identified a minor electrical issue,” the White House said in a statement on the Rapid Response 47 X account. “Out of an abundance of caution, AF1 is returning to Joint Base Andrews. The President and team will board a different aircraft and continue on to Switzerland.”
Air Force One landed at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland at just before 9:30 p.m local time on Tuesday.
Trump flew out on a replacement Air Force One, a smaller 757 aircraft, at around 12:02 a.m, according to CNN. The flight is expected to take around 7 hours.
The president did not speak to media during the flight switch. For security reasons, no footage of Trump alighting the back-up aircraft was released, CNN reported.
The president is joined by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, Communications Director Steven Cheung, National Security Advisor Robert Gabriel, Deputy National Security Advisor Monica Crowley, National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett, Staff Secretary Will Scharf, speechwriter Ross Worthington and Deputy Chief of Staffs Stephen Miller, James Blair and Beau Harrison, reports from the White House pool said.
It is the first time Trump has attended the World Economic Forum in Davos in person since 2020.
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.
Last May, Trump revealed he will accept a Qatari jumbo jet to serve as a new, improved Air Force One that reportedly costs $400 million.
It was donated by Qatar as an “unconditional” gift, with Trump suggesting he did not want to turn down a “free plane.”
At the time, Trump said he did not know the cost of retrofitting the 13-year-old plane, saying, “That’s up to the military.”
Despite backlash over the optics of the gifted plane, the White House has insisted it is legal to take the gift, and that it will be donated to Trump’s presidential library when his term is over.
CNN aviation expert Peter Goelz said Boeing are already 18 months past their deadline on the new plane. “My guess is we’re not going to see the new Air Force One before the end of Trump’s term, so they’re really going to have to double down and get production going, because this is going to be quite infuriating to this president.”
Prior to leaving for Switzerland, the 79-year-old told reporters he was unsure how the World Economic Forum would work out.
“This will be an interesting trip. I have no idea what’s going to happen but you are well represented,” Trump said.
The event, which gathers political and business leaders, is held in the Swiss resort town of Davos. Trump is expected to make a speech at the forum on Wednesday.
Trump repeated his comment on Truth Social, stating “America will be well represented in Davos—by me."
