President Donald Trump secretly flew out of a NATO summit in Turkey on an alternate military aircraft due to an Iranian assassination threat. The White House made it appear that Trump was flying on Air Force One, while he was actually on a smaller plane, an Air Force C-32A.
Security Concerns
The operation was prompted by an Iranian assassination threat against Trump. A former special agent with the Secret Service said such an unusual move could either reflect actionable intelligence or an abundance of caution given volatility in the region with the wars in Iran and Ukraine.
Trump had flown to the summit in a new Qatari-gifted and retrofitted red, white and navy blue jet. However, ahead of departing Turkey, he said he would fly partway home on an older-model baby blue Air Force One plane instead.
The president at the time said the new luxury jet was being flown out ahead of his departure from Ankara to give some U.S. troops based in eastern England a chance to check out the new Air Force One.
Response to the Incident
Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal called for a congressional investigation, saying the incident was ‘unprecedented and surreal.’ The White House did not respond directly to questions about the report of the secret operation to whisk Trump out of the country on a third aircraft.
Original reporting: Dallas TX News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
