President Donald Trump secretly left Air Force One during his trip to Turkey last month and boarded a separate military aircraft as part of an elaborate security operation tied to an Iranian threat, according to reports from The Washington Post and The New York Times.
Trump departed Air Force One using a catering truck shortly after boarding the plane and after the doors closed, then transferred to a smaller military aircraft. Decoy planes flew separately to England while reporters traveling with the president were told to keep their window shades down. The press corps was unaware Trump was not on their plane.
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The White House has not confirmed or denied the reports, but said it uses every tool available to protect the president from threats.
The incident took place July 8, when Trump was in Turkey for a NATO summit meeting with world leaders. It was during the departure from Turkey that the security operation was carried out.
"Air Force One" is a call sign that applies to whatever aircraft the president is aboard. When Trump transferred to the smaller military aircraft, that plane became Air Force One.
The steps taken by the Secret Service and U.S. intelligence suggest officials believed there was a credible threat to the president. Experts note that the extraordinary security measures typically surrounding Air Force One make the operation all the more significant.
Members of the Washington press corps have raised questions about why they were allowed to remain on the plane along with other staffers while the president was on a separate aircraft.
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The White House has not confirmed the reports.
Trump has survived multiple assassination attempts, including a 2024 shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, and a separate incident at his golf course. The White House Correspondents Dinner was also the site of a high-profile security incident earlier this year.
