Deportation flights carrying illegal immigrants out of the United States surged in May to the highest levels seen since President Donald Trump took office.Nearly 300 Immigration and Customs Enforcement deportation flights departed the country last month, more than double the 126 flights during Trump’s first full month in office, according to Human Rights First, a Washington-based advocacy organization.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told the Washington Examiner on Wednesday that the government has deported nearly 900,000 illegal immigrants since Jan. 20, 2025. Approximately 3,000 government-chartered removal flights have taken off under Trump.
The Trump administration’s mass deportation operation comprises three components: arrest, detention, and removal. Over the past year and a half, the DHS and ICE have built up infrastructure and resources to arrest more people nationwide and additional detention spaces to hold those people while they are waiting to go before immigration judges, who must approve or deny each removal.
Graphic compiled by Human Rights First’s ICE Flight Monitor project
DHS officials claim to have arrested more than 400,000 illegal immigrants between mid-April and May 17, for a total of more than 900,000 arrests since early 2025.A DHS spokesperson also said 2.2 million people have self-deported, or voluntarily left the country, in addition to the 900,000 who were deported on government planes.Where planes were headed
