Trump Confirms Secret Plane Switch Amid Reported Iranian Threat
By SUSAN ESSEX
US President Donald Trump has confirmed that he secretly changed aircraft during his return journey from Turkey last month.
The switch followed concerns about a possible threat linked to Iran.
Trump said the decision came from the US military and security officials.
According to him, he followed their instructions without demanding extensive details.
“I go by the Secret Service and the military,” Trump told reporters. “They wanted me to go on a different flight, a different plane. I just have to do what they say.”
He acknowledged that a threat existed but said he did not allow it to trouble him.
“I guess there was a threat out there,” he said.
The unusual security operation reportedly took place after Trump attended a summit in Ankara.
His journey came at a period of heightened tension between Washington and Tehran.
The United States had also begun a sustained military campaign against Iran.
Reports later emerged that Trump had used a carefully coordinated aircraft switch to reduce the risk of a possible attack.
The operation reportedly began when Trump publicly boarded the ageing presidential aircraft commonly known as Air Force One.
Journalists and White House officials believed the president remained on board.
However, reports said security personnel later transferred him to a different military aircraft.
The alternate aircraft was identified as an Air Force C-32A.
Trump reportedly flew on the military plane to a refuelling stop in the United Kingdom.
Meanwhile, journalists and some White House officials continued travelling on the presidential aircraft.
Several of those travelling with the White House press corps reportedly believed Trump was still on the same plane.
Security officials also instructed passengers to keep their window shades closed.
That unusual instruction later fuelled questions about what had happened during the journey.
Trump eventually reappeared on the presidential aircraft after reaching RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk, England.
Reports did not clearly establish how security officials transferred him back to the aircraft.
He later continued his journey to Washington.
Trump subsequently confirmed the aircraft switch while discussing the reported Iranian threat.
The admission provided the first direct acknowledgement from the president that security concerns had triggered the secret operation.
The episode also highlights the extraordinary security measures surrounding the US presidency.
A possible threat can force the military and Secret Service to alter travel plans, aircraft arrangements and even the information available to officials travelling with the president.
Trump has repeatedly presented himself as a target of Iranian hostility.
The latest disclosure now places his journey from Turkey within the wider context of escalating tensions between Washington and Tehran.
While the precise nature of the reported threat remains unclear, Trump’s confirmation shows that US security agencies considered it serious enough to secretly move the president to another aircraft during an international trip.
