A credible threat from Iranian proxy forces against President Trump prompted a last-minute switch from a newly donated Boeing 747-8 to the traditional Air Force One during this month's NATO summit in Turkey, according to multiple officials.
Trump had arrived in Ankara aboard the Qatari-donated jet, a newer aircraft lacking the sophisticated defensive systems of the standard Air Force One fleet. When U.S. Authorities detected intelligence indicating a credible threat while the president attended the summit, the Secret Service recommended he depart on the older aircraft instead. Trump later publicly confirmed the change.
Officials stressed that the intelligence did not indicate the newer plane itself was specifically targeted, but rather that the threat was directed at Trump regardless of which aircraft he used. The White House declined direct comment but expressed confidence in security precautions, while knowledge of the specific intelligence remained tightly restricted within the administration. Congressional leaders were not informed of the precise nature of the threat.
Trump initially attributed the swap to allowing American service members in Britain to tour the newer plane, but The New York Times subsequently reported the Secret Service had advised the switch.
Around the time of the aircraft change, reports emerged that Israel had shared intelligence with Washington about Iranian assassination efforts targeting Trump. However, several officials familiar with the matter said the threat prompting the Turkey aircraft swap was unrelated to that intelligence, with some U.S. Officials questioning its reliability.
Trump acknowledged on Sunday that the donated jet still lacks some defensive technology. When asked about absent antimissile systems, he responded the aircraft would soon be "maxed out." During the summit, Trump said of Iran: "They want to take out the U.S. leader, me. I'm on every list."
Iran-linked groups have targeted Trump since his first term, following the U.S. Military's killing of senior Iranian General Qassim Suleimani.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated the donated aircraft would undergo "additional upgrades and enhancements in the fall which will take approximately one month to complete," During which the president will use the older Air Force One.
At a Secret Service briefing, Director Sean Curran warned that threat levels facing protected officials have reached unprecedented levels. "The numbers at this agency, and certainly I've never seen in my 24-year career, they're off the charts," He said. "I think the environment has become very volatile and that's just across the board."