The Washington Post reports that on July 8, President Trump was quietly removed from Air Force One in Ankara and flown to Britain on an Air Force C-32A after intelligence identified a credible Iran-linked assassination threat. Trump initially boarded the legacy Air Force One for cameras, then exited via a catering truck and was transferred to the smaller jet while reporters remained on a decoy aircraft. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth accompanied him, and the secret flight used the call sign "Reach 18." The White House publicly maintained the ruse and Trump later departed on a Qatari-gifted Boeing 747-8.
Inside the Secret Flight: Trump Moved Off Air Force One in Ankara After Credible Iran-Linked Assassination Threat
AP Photo/Alex Brandon
Officials quietly removed President Donald Trump from the familiar Air Force One and flew him out of Ankara on a different military aircraft on July 8 after intelligence officials identified a credible Iran-linked assassination threat, The Washington Post reported.
The covert operation unfolded as Trump departed a NATO summit in Turkey, one day after the United States renewed military strikes on Iran. Publicly, the White House said the president would switch planes so he could display a Qatari-gifted Boeing 747-8 to U.S. troops in the U.K. In reality, the Post reports, Trump was transferred to an Air Force C-32A — a modified Boeing 757 — for the international leg.
How The Swap Worked
According to the report, the president initially boarded the blue-and-white legacy Air Force One in front of television cameras. Minutes later, Trump and several aides left the aircraft through a different door, climbed into an airport catering truck that had been elevated to the jet, and were driven to the smaller C-32A. Journalists and some White House staff remained on the larger jet, unaware that Trump had departed; one U.S. official described that plane as a "decoy."
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth accompanied the president on the secret flight. The operation used the low-profile call sign "Reach 18," while the legacy jet carrying reporters and staff later appeared on flight trackers as "AF1," despite the president not being aboard.
Context And Reactions
Officials say the swap followed intelligence of a credible threat linked to Iran directed at the president or his aircraft amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran. After arriving in Britain, Trump told reporters he believed he was "number one" on Iran's "list." The White House continued the public ruse, posting that Trump had landed "aboard the former Air Force One." He was photographed disembarking that aircraft before later boarding the Qatari-gifted 747-8 for the return flight to Washington.
'But if I go, you go. Right? Perhaps someday you want to change professions.'
The detailed account was first published by The Washington Post and republished by outlets including Mediaite. The New York Times had earlier reported that security concerns prompted a plane change. Officials have not publicly released all specifics of the security assessment.
Help us improve.
