The alarming reason Donald Trump had to downgrade from his new $400 million jet gifted to him by the Qatari government has been revealed.
The 80-year-old president played a game of changing planes as he headed home from the NATO summit in Turkey on Wednesday, after bragging about the resumption of his war on Iran on his social media.
He flew out of Turkey on an older version of Air Force One, a Boeing VC-25A from the early 1990s, landing at Royal Air Force Mildenhall, a U.K. base used by U.S. troops. Trump claimed he used the older plane “for old time’s sake,” so that U.S. troops in England could “tour” the newer one.
The president then switched to his freshly gifted Air Force One for the flight back to America. However, the unusual trade raised questions about the security capability of Trump’s controversial gift.
Trump deliberately swapped out the new Qatari plane over concerns his gifted aircraft could not provide the necessary secure communication systems and military defenses required to manage his re-ignited conflict with Iran, according to two former national security officials familiar with the matter who spoke to MS NOW.
That saw Trump use the previous Air Force One to fly to the U.S. base in the United Kingdom. Unlike his Qatari gift, the older plane has tried-and-tested command-and-control functions, including missile-defensive systems and the ability to refuel mid-air.
The pre-loved plane can be transformed into a “flying situation room,” so the president can receive classified intelligence briefings and give orders to military officers around the world.
“This plane was built for aesthetics, not mission,” a former national security official explained of Trump’s new Qatari Boeing VC-25B, which was originally manufactured as a passenger jet in 2012. “We know about its paint, its leather seats. But we don’t know its capabilities.”
Security on the flight out of Turkey was critical as Trump authorized additional strikes against nearby Iran mid-air.
The president boarded the plane out of Turkey “unusually quickly,” the New York Times reported. When media on board asked the president why they were told to lower their window blinds before takeoff, which is a security measure, Trump told the press pool, “Because you’re, you know, probably on a dangerous flight, because of the sleazebags that we have to deal with.”
A reporter followed up by asking about whether Iran was considering targeting him.
“Well,” Trump replied, “I mean if they ask you to close your windows, probably they feel that way. They didn’t ask me to close mine, but if they did, I would have done it. These are sick people, so I could see something like that. I didn’t know they did that, but I could see something.”
A U.S Air Force spokesperson declined to comment to MS NOW on why Trump flew on the older Air Force One, but said there was no concern about the Qatari jet’s abilities.
“The Air Force is confident the VC-25B Bridge Aircraft is safe, secure and equipped with the most advanced technologies necessary to meet the requirements of the presidential mission,” the spokesperson said.
The Daily Beast has also contacted the White House and the Secret Service for comment. Both declined to comment to MS NOW.
When reached for comment, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung told PBS that “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 added: “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 — including distraction and misdirection — to address those threats."
Cheung was filmed on Trump’s new jet last week, sitting under a framed portrait of Trump’s cursed Reflecting Pool.
The Qatari jet had an accelerated 10-month conversion, with Reuters stating the speedy renovation meant that some experts “expressed concern the plane may not be as secure as the existing Air Force One aircraft."
During his visit to Turkey for the NATO summit, the war between America and Iran flared up. CENTCOM said in a statement that U.S. forces struck “approximately 90 Iranian military targets including air defense systems, coastal surveillance assets, missile and drone storage sites, naval capabilities, and military logistics infrastructure along Iran’s coastline.”
