Secret Service urged Trump to use older Air Force One amid Iran threat

The Secret Service urged Donald Trump to leave Turkey on the older Air Force One rather than the newly retrofitted Qatari-gifted Boeing 747-8 as the conflict with Iran escalated. Trump later switched to the new jet after a stop in the United Kingdom.

The older VC-25A presidential jets have secure communications and sophisticated military defenses, and the current fleet carries a full self-defensive suite. It remains unclear whether the Qatar-linked 747 has laser-based missile countermeasures, electronic countermeasures, chaff, flares, or other classified defenses normally expected on presidential travel.

Long-haul trips through Europe, the Middle East, or other regions put a premium on systems that can disrupt or decoy incoming missiles and preserve command-and-control links if a crisis develops in the air. Richard Aboulafia said the plane needs self-defensive capabilities, electronic countermeasures, chaff, and flares.

Trump said he was “No. 1 on the kill list for Iran.” The White House defended the aircraft’s safety, even as the new plane had been rushed into service and was still missing some desired capabilities. The aircraft is a $400 million jet that the military spent months retrofitting.

Boeing signed a $3.9 billion contract in 2018 to convert two 747-8s into the next VC-25B presidential aircraft, but the jets were originally due in 2024 and are now expected in mid-2028 and 2029. On May 1, the bridge aircraft had finished modifications and testing and only needed painting before summer operations, while the service also bought two additional 747-8s in 2026 for training and spare parts. Air Force Secretary Troy Meink told lawmakers in June that retrofit estimates of about $1 billion were too high and said the actual cost could be less than $400 million.