President Trump is reportedly fuming about the fact that the public has caught on to the (obvious) safety issues with his new $400 million “flying palace” Air Force One gifted by Qatar, and it’s leading to journalists getting subpoenaed.
While I can appreciate the desire to protect government secrets, the reporting seems about as shocking as finding out that water is wet, or that the sun is bright…
Air Force One safety issues lead to journalist subpoenas
In mid-June 2026, the Air Force took delivery of the new Boeing 747-8 that was gifted by Qatar, which will act as the primary new aircraft for carrying the president, which carries the designator “Air Force One” (though when Trump leaves office he gets to keep it, as it’ll go into his presidential library).
The converted Boeing 747-200s that acted as the primary Air Force One aircraft up until this point were definitely getting a bit old, and for years, there has been a contract in place for two replacement Boeing 747-8s. However, the delivery of those has been delayed massively, given the amount of special equipment that needs to be installed, to keep the president safe.
So when Trump recently flew to Turkey for a NATO summit, he flew the outbound on his new Boeing 747-8. However, for the return flight out of Turkey, shortly after the ceasefire with Iran was called off, he once again flew the old Boeing 747-200. While he claimed that he was doing this to “honor the military,” the reason was obvious — there were safety concerns with the plane.
The new Air Force One is clearly about vanity and prestige, rather than about flying in the safest way possible. Following this, The New York Times reported that security precautions caused Trump to use the old Air Force One to fly out of Turkey, quoting people familiar with the matter.
Well, Trump isn’t happy with that reporting, and four reporters have now been subpoenaed by the US Justice Department, to testify before a grand jury in Manhattan next Wednesday. In a statement, the US Justice Department shared the following:
“To the extent that we have to investigate breaches of national security, that’s something that we will continue to do. To be clear, reporters are not the targets, those leaking classified information are. We recognize there may always be natural tension there. But we are not going to ignore the law and stop investigating the people who work in the administration and think it’s okay to leak classified information impacting national security.”
I understand wanting to prevent national security breaches, but…
On the surface, I understand the need to look out for national security interests, and to prevent leaks. However, the report in question by The New York Times really didn’t state anything that I wouldn’t consider to be obvious to someone of average intelligence. The report suggested that:
- Officials were worried that the new aircraft didn’t yet have all the defensive systems and countermeasures carried by the previous Air Force One, including some missile defense capabilities
- The report suggested that those concerns became more serious because of increased tensions with Iran
The Trump administration has insisted that’s not the case, and that the plane has met the high security standards.
But seriously, let’s look at this semi-objectively. The two purpose-built Boeing 747-8s that will act as Air Force One in the future have now been delayed by a minimum of four years. The delay isn’t with building the 747-8 as such, but instead, with installing all the sophisticated equipment needed to protect the president.
Meanwhile Trump’s Qatar-gifted 747-8 was in service in less than a year. I mean, isn’t it obvious that it doesn’t have all the same safety equipment? If all the necessary safety equipment could actually be installed that fast, then why aren’t the two existing 747-8s in production just fast tracked? Anyone? Bueller?
Bottom line
The US Justice Department has subpoenaed reporters from The New York Times for breaking the news that the new Air Force One clearly doesn’t have the same security equipment as the previous Air Force One. That seems exceedingly obvious, given that the jet was prepared for service in a matter of months, while the two replacement Air Force Ones are four years behind schedule (best case scenario) due to the complexity of installing this equipment.
I understand the need to protect national security interests and prevent leaks, but if the government really thinks it’s a “secret” that this plane doesn’t have all the typical Air Force One equipment, then, well… we have bigger issues.