United States President Donald Trump unexpectedly left Turkiye 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 Turkiye for the Nato summit, the first international travel for the new plane, took place as hostilities escalated with Iran, a country that borders Turkiye.
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 US service members stationed there could tour the aircraft.
