US President Donald Trump confirmed on Tuesday, August 12th, 2026, that he secretly switched planes when returning from Turkey in July following the NATO summit. He said the decision was made by the Secret Service and the military due to a security threat.

“They wanted me to go on a different flight, a different plane,” Trump told reporters after deplaning Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews outside Washington. “I guess there was a threat out there.”

NBC News confirmed earlier reports by The Washington Post that on July 8th, Trump covertly moved to an unmarked C-32 jet using a catering truck after boarding Air Force One in front of cameras. He flew from Ankara to a base in the United Kingdom on this unmarked jet, while reporters and White House staff, including senior officials like Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, believed he was aboard Air Force One.

Trump did not elaborate on why the unmarked jet was considered a likelier target but stated, “I think actually the plane that I flew on was at greater risk.”

NBC News also reported, citing a U.S. official, that the plane switch was prompted by a fresh Iranian assassination plot against Trump, possibly involving a shoulder-fired missile aimed at Air Force One as it departed Turkey.

The elaborate maneuver was carried out to protect the president amid these threats, with the Secret Service and military insisting on the use of a decoy Air Force One flight. Trump said he complied with their directive, stating, “I do what they say.”

This was the first time the president spoke publicly about the previously undisclosed flight.

Sources