Washington, Aug 14:
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he slipped away from Air Force One after a trip last month in Turkiye because the Secret Service and military wanted him on a “different plane” due to a threat that he insisted didn’t scare him.
Trump downplayed the extraordinary nature of the subterfuge involved in his flight, which saw him stow away in an airport catering container to sneak onto another plane while Air Force One was sent into the sky, essentially as a decoy.
He also downplayed the risk to the people – White House officials, security and support staff, and reporters – he left on the plane. “They wanted me to go on a different flight, different plane,” Trump told reporters after returning from an event in Ohio, saying he had little choice in the matter.
“I guess there was a threat out there. I didn’t really ask too much about it,” he said. “I get a lot of threats.” His comments confirmed a report that first appeared in The Washington Post saying that Trump, following a NATO summit last month, was spirited onto a different plane because of a credible threat from Iran.
The action was kept secret for weeks, until the newspaper’s story.
“I think actually the plane that I flew on was at greater risk,” Trump said Tuesday, who did not provide many details about the action. But he said the incident did not scare him. “I don’t worry about anything, to be honest,” Trump said. “Whatever it is. You know my attitude? Whatever!”
Commanders in chief have sometimes kept overseas trips covert for security reasons, with schedules and logistics kept classified until after for safety reasons. But the fact that Trump’s whereabouts were concealed at the time and for weeks afterward is believed to be unprecedented.
After hiding in the catering vehicle and being moved to the other plane, Trump stopped in Britain, sneaked back aboard the presidential plane undetected, and even later scoffed when asked about potential danger.