US President Donald Trump said the aircraft donated by Qatar, which served as Air Force One, will be sent for upgrades as concerns grow over the plane’s safety features.
Stepping off the plane after returning from the World Cup finals in New Jersey on Sunday, Trump was asked about the missile defense capabilities of the newly refurbished plane.
“It has a lot of potential, but my understanding is that in about a month or so they are going to send it out to make the most of it,” Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews.
Trump says new Air Force One from Qatar will get ‘maximum’ upgrades
Trump says new Air Force One from Qatar will get ‘maximum’ upgrades
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“They’re going to send it out and they’re going to run out of it. It’s going to take about a month,” he added.
Concerns over the new $400 million plane donated by Qatar have been in the spotlight since earlier this month, CNN reported, when Trump unexpectedly abandoned the plane during his return from a NATO summit in Turkey and said he was sending the new plane to Mildenhall Air Force Base in England.
Trump said the plane swaps were simply to give U.S. troops stationed at the base “a chance to inspect the aircraft.”
CNN also reported that two U.S. officials said security officials felt more comfortable with the president aboard an older plane that was built from the ground up with the commander-in-chief’s security in mind, rather than a plane that was recently modernized after being donated by Qatar.
Legal, ethical and national security questions about the new Air Force One remain as Trump makes its maiden flight.
Legal, ethical and national security questions about the new Air Force One remain as Trump makes its maiden flight.
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Two sources familiar with the matter said the new plane does not have the same security capabilities in an international environment, although a third said it is equipped with many of the same features as the old plane.
Security concerns surrounding the plane were previously reported by the New York Times.
A major White House investigation has been launched to determine who in the government leaked information about these security flaws, CNN reported, with some officials being asked to turn over their phones to investigators on White House grounds, sources familiar with the matter told CNN. The move came as Trump was furious over the revelations, sources said.