Shortly before Air Force One took off from Turkey at the end of last month’s NATO summit, President Trump secretly escaped from the presidential plane and was transferred to another plane with the help of an airport catering truck, according to a US official with direct knowledge of the matter. The ruse was employed because the United States had learned of a threat from Iran and its allies. US intelligence had detected a credible plot to fire a missile at the plane Trump was on as it left the Turkish capital of Ankara, CBS News exclusively reported. The president had expressed his awareness of the risks posed by war between the United States and Iran, calling himself Iran’s “number one target” during the NATO summit. The Washington Post was the first to report on the secret plane change. Several Trump administration officials expressed frustration Monday night that highly classified tactics and procedures were leaked into the public eye, which could limit future protection operations for US presidents. Hours before the move, on July 8, Trump announced that he would leave Ankara on the old Air Force One rather than on a newer plane donated by Qatar that he had taken to the NATO summit. The president said he was switching planes “for old times’ sake,” and that U.S. forces stationed at a refueling stop in the United Kingdom could check out the new plane, but CBS News reported that the Secret Service advised him to take the older plane for security reasons. Video footage captured by the press showed the president walking up the stairs of the old Air Force One and disappearing into the plane, with a catering truck visible on the other side of the plane. Several minutes later, the truck took off and headed toward another U.S. government plane, which the Post reported was an Air Force C-32A. Trump then flew from Ankara to a refueling stop in the United Kingdom on a separate plane, while members of the president’s press and staff traveled the same route on Air Force One, believing they were aboard the same plane as the president. A catering truck parked next to the former Air Force One plane on the tarmac before its departure from Ankara Esenboga Airport in Ankara, Turkey, July 8, 2026, following a NATO summit attended by President Trump. SAUL LOEB /AFP via Getty Images While in Ankara, members of the press were told to keep the blinds in the Air Force One press box closed, journalists said at the time. When asked why it was necessary to close the blinds, Trump later told reporters that they were “probably on a dangerous flight because of the sleazeball we have to deal with.” In the United Kingdom, Trump switched to the new Air Force One, which was donated by the Qatari government last year and modernized by the United States Air Force to serve as the new presidential plane. Trump spoke to members of the press as they flew across the Atlantic to Washington, DC. The Trump administration has never publicly revealed that the press and some members of the president’s staff were flying in a decoy plane. Last month, the new Air Force One, which debuted in June, was sent to be “maximized” with additional improvements, the president told reporters, after questions arose about the new plane’s safety features. When asked Monday about the decision to secretly switch planes in Turkey, White House communications director Steven Cheung did not directly answer the question, saying in a statement: “The new Air Force One is a state-of-the-art aircraft that has been equipped with high-level safety protocols that ensure safety.” of the President and his staff, as the President has recently said, there are many enemies of the United States who have their sights set on it, and we use every tool at our disposal to confront those threats.” The Air Force has also called the new presidential aircraft “secure and equipped with the most advanced technologies necessary to meet the requirements of the presidential mission.” Go deeper with The Free Press
