Trump flies old Air Force One out of Turkey, switches to new jet in Britain for trip home

President Donald Trump unexpectedly left Turkey on Wednesday aboard an older Air Force One rather than the newly renovated Qatari-donated jet that brought him there, but later boarded the new plane in Britain for the flight to Washington.

The trip to Turkey for the NATO summit, the first international travel for the new plane, took place as hostilities escalated with Iran, a country that borders Turkey.

The unexpected plane switch followed months of scrutiny over the luxury gift intended to serve as a temporary replacement while Boeing struggled to deliver long-delayed next-generation Air Force One planes.

Critics questioned the cost, security and pace of the retrofit.

Trump said on Truth Social that he would use an older baby blue Air Force One plane “for old time’s sake” to fly from Ankara to RAF Mildenhall in Britain while the new plane stopped at the same base so U.S. service members stationed there could tour the aircraft.

Video late on Wednesday showed Trump boarding the new Air Force One gifted by Qatar at the British base as it prepared to fly to the U.S.

The new plane, with red, white, dark blue and gold livery chosen by Trump, is a Boeing 747 gifted to the United States by Qatar last year and refitted by defense contractor L3Harris Technologies.

Trump, asked in Ankara if a threat of assassination prompted his decision to change planes for his departure from Turkey, did not answer directly but acknowledged the potential threat.

“I’m number one on the kill list for Iran,” he told reporters at a news conference as the NATO summit concluded. “I don’t know. I can’t tell you that but I don’t really care.”

The upgrades to the jet from Qatar were completed so quickly that some experts expressed concern the plane may not be as secure as the existing Air Force One aircraft.

‘So the soldiers can see it’

Trump had said in Turkey the new Air Force One would travel to two or three big military bases in Europe before returning to the United States “so the soldiers can see it because it’s truly magnificent.” But it appeared the plane’s only stop was at the British base.

Trump wrote late on Wednesday on social media that he had landed at RAF Mildenhall “and met up with our new Air Force One.”

Service members at the base “were very excited, picture enclosed. It was on our way back to the States from Turkey, with virtually no deviation of flightpath,” he said.

The Qatari jet’s acceptance had drawn scrutiny. Retrofitting the luxury plane required security upgrades, communications improvements to prevent eavesdropping and missile defense capabilities, experts said.

Democratic lawmakers estimated the conversion cost more than $1 billion and raised concerns about its security.

A second aircraft that can operate as Air Force One is always on standby during presidential trips.

The Air Force’s fast-track effort to ready the jet skipped some planned modifications for the next-generation presidential aircraft in order to deliver an interim version sooner.

Officials have said the plane still meets presidential standards.

Boeing is working to deliver two purpose-built 747-8s under a $3.9 billion fixed-price contract signed in 2018.

That program is now four years behind schedule, with delivery not expected until mid-2028, meaning a new, U.S.-built plane may not be ready before Trump’s term ends in January 2029.

Costs on the Boeing program have grown to more than $5 billion, with the company booking billions of dollars in charges tied to the project.

周三，唐纳德·特朗普总统出人意料地乘坐一架老旧的空军一号离开土耳其，而不是他前往土耳其时乘坐的卡塔尔捐赠的经过翻新的飞机。但后来，他在英国登上了这架新飞机，飞往华盛顿。

此次前往土耳其参加北约峰会的旅程，是这架新飞机的首次国际飞行。当时，土耳其与邻国伊朗之间的敌对行动正在升级。

在波音公司努力交付长期延误的下一代空军一号飞机期间，这份旨在作为临时替代品的豪华礼物受到了数月的密切关注，随后发生了这起出人意料的飞机更换事件。

批评人士质疑改造的成本、安全性和进度。

特朗普在 Truth Social 上表示，他将使用一架老旧的浅蓝色空军一号飞机“为了怀旧”，从安卡拉飞往英国米尔登霍尔皇家空军基地，而新飞机将在同一基地停留，以便驻扎在那里的美国军人可以参观这架飞机。

周三晚些时候发布的视频显示，特朗普在英国空军基地登上卡塔尔赠送的全新空军一号，准备飞往美国。

这架新飞机采用特朗普选择的红、白、深蓝和金色涂装，是一架波音747，由卡塔尔去年赠送给美国，并由国防承包商L3Harris Technologies进行了改装。

当被问及是否因为受到暗杀威胁才决定更换离开土耳其的飞机时，特朗普在安卡拉没有直接回答，但承认存在潜在威胁。

“我是伊朗的头号暗杀目标，”他在北约峰会结束后举行的新闻发布会上告诉记者。“我不知道。我不能告诉你，但我真的不在乎。”

卡塔尔对这架喷气式飞机的升级改造完成得如此之快，以至于一些专家担心这架飞机的安全性可能不如现有的空军一号飞机。

“这样士兵们就能看到了。”

特朗普在土耳其时曾表示，新的空军一号在返回美国之前，将前往欧洲两到三个大型军事基地，“这样士兵们就能亲眼目睹它，因为它确实非常壮观。”但事实证明，这架飞机只在英国的军事基地停留了一会儿。

特朗普周三晚些时候在社交媒体上发文称，他已抵达米尔登霍尔皇家空军基地，“并与我们的新空军一号会合”。

他说：“基地里的官兵们都非常兴奋，附图一张。当时我们正在从土耳其返回美国的途中，飞行路线几乎没有偏离。”

卡塔尔接收这架飞机一事引起了广泛关注。专家表示，对这架豪华飞机进行改装需要升级安全系统、改进通信系统以防止窃听，以及提升导弹防御能力。

民主党议员估计此次转换耗资超过10亿美元，并对其安全性表示担忧。

在总统出行期间，始终有一架可作为“空军一号”使用的备用飞机待命。

为了尽快交付过渡版本，空军加快了喷气式飞机的准备工作，跳过了下一代总统专机的一些计划内的改进。

官员们表示，这架飞机仍然符合总统标准。

波音公司正努力根据 2018 年签署的价值 39 亿美元的固定价格合同交付两架特制的 747-8 飞机。

该项目目前已比原计划落后四年，预计要到 2028 年年中才能交付，这意味着一架新的美国制造的飞机可能在特朗普 2029 年 1 月任期结束之前都无法准备就绪。

波音公司该项目的成本已超过 50 亿美元，该公司已计入与该项目相关的数十亿美元费用。