In a move shrouded in secrecy, President Donald Trump executed a covert plane swap during his departure from the Nato summit in Ankara last month. The operation, prompted by a credible Iranian threat, involved a carefully orchestrated ruse that left journalists and some White House staff unaware of the president’s true whereabouts.
The revelation of this high-stakes maneuver has sparked intense scrutiny and raised questions about the safety of those left on the decoy plane. The incident underscores the complex security measures employed to protect the president, even as it highlights the potential risks faced by those in his immediate vicinity.
The Anatomy of a Covert Operation
On 8 July, President Trump was seen boarding Air Force One at Ankara airport, a moment captured by television cameras and the traveling press pool. However, according to reports from the Washington Post the president was then secretly moved off the plane using an airport catering truck positioned on the opposite side of the aircraft, out of sight of reporters.
Trump was transferred to a smaller C-32A military aircraft, a modified Boeing 757 often used by the vice president. Meanwhile, journalists and some White House staff remained aboard Air Force One, believing the president was with them. The operation effectively turned Air Force One into a decoy, with the president traveling separately to the United Kingdom.
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth boarded the C-32A separately using external stairs in an effort to make the flight appear normal. The media pool producer on the plane noted the unusual instruction to keep the window shades down, a precaution that only became clear after details of the operation surfaced.
The Credible Threat
Officials told the BBC’s US partner, CBS News, that the US had detected a credible Iranian threat to fire a missile at the plane. The New York Times reported that US intelligence had information about a person near the Nato summit who had been seen with a shoulder-fired missile.
Trump himself acknowledged the threat during a visit aboard Air Force One to an event in Ohio on Tuesday. “I go by Secret Service and the military. They wanted me to go in a different flight, different plane,” Trump told reporters. “I just have to do what they say.”
The clandestine maneuver came a day after the US renewed military strikes on Iran following a breakdown of negotiations between Washington and Tehran to end the war. Trump had previously said he was Iran’s “number one target” during the summit in Ankara.
The Safety of the Decoy Plane
The last-minute switch has raised questions about whether those left on the decoy plane were in danger. Trump suggested that the jet he boarded instead could have been at “greater risk… because that would be the plane, I think, that they would be more likely to go for.”
Journalists and some White House staff on board did not know the US president had been smuggled out as part of an elaborate ruse in response to a possible Iranian threat. The operation involved the use of two catering trucks at both the front and back of the plane, and the media van was too far back in the motorcade at the airport to take a photo of the president boarding.
Technically, “Air Force One” is the call sign for any aircraft carrying the US president. On this occasion, the C-32A used the call sign “Reach 18,” while the aircraft carrying the journalists continued to use “AF1” in order to keep up the ruse.
Remaining on the original aircraft were members of Trump’s cabinet, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. During the stop-off in the UK at the RAF Mildenhall air base, Trump transferred from the C-32A back to the legacy jet, though it is not clear how as this maneuver similarly unfolded in secret.
Trump was next seen descending from the legacy jet as if he had been traveling on it all along. He then transferred to the new, Qatari-donated plane, before completing the journey back to Washington. During that final flight, Trump spoke to reporters on board where he noted the threats posed by Iran but did not mention the earlier plane swap.
Asked why reporters had been told to lower the window shades on the plane from Turkey, Trump said at the time: “Because you’re probably on a dangerous flight because of the sleazebags we have to deal with.” He said he had a “threat all the time” on his life, and that he is “number one” on Iran’s “list.”
Jose Zamora, regional director for the Americas for the Committee to Protect Journalists, said in a statement that the Trump administration “has a responsibility to ensure that journalists covering the president are not unnecessarily exposed to danger.” “Reporters should be informed of credible security threats so they can make informed decisions about their safety,” he added.
