President Trump's surprise decision to fly out of Turkey on the older, iconic blue-and-white Air Force One on Wednesday was no sentimental whim, the White House now says. Communications director Steven Cheung says the move was part of a broader security strategy, calling it "distraction and misdirection" amid what Trump has described as elevated threats against him, the Hill reports. Cheung insisted the new Air Force One donated by Qatar remains "state-of-the-art," with advanced security measures for the president and staff.
Trump had told reporters he was using the older jet "for old times' sake" and so troops at Britain's RAF Mildenhall could see the newer aircraft, which later ferried him back to the US. Press traveling with him from Turkey to the UK were instructed to keep window shades down, though no formal explanation was given. Trump attributed it to unspecified "sleazebags over here." Sources tell the New York Times that the change of plane was made at the urging of the Secret Service.
Despite Cheung's remarks, it's not clear whether the plane donated by Qatar was retrofitted with adequate security measures amid pressure from Trump to get it into service as soon as possible, the Times reports. The older aircraft is believed to be equipped with missile defense systems. Experts, including Pentagon officials, estimated that fully upgrading the new plane would cost around $1 billion and take two years to complete. It ended up entering service after less than a year, with officials estimating the cost at below $400 million.
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