Trump’s secret plane switch took place within a day of credible missile threat

Washington — Last month’s elaborate ruse that saw President Trump secretly move from Air Force One to another plane by way of a catering truck took place within a day of U.S. and Turkish intelligence picking up on an Iranian plot to fire a missile at the presidential jet, CBS News has learned.

The decision to shift Mr. Trump to a different plane was made while the annual NATO conference was underway in Ankara, according to two law enforcement officials and a U.S. official. The president had flown into the Turkish capital on a newly retrofitted Boeing 747 donated by the government of Qatar, but an older white-and-blue jet that has served as Air Force One since the 1990s was also on the ground as a support aircraft.

Ahead of Mr. Trump’s July 8 departure from the summit, the National Security Agency, the CIA and Turkey’s MIT intelligence service picked up streams of information about a credible plot by Iran to fire a surface-to-air missile at Air Force One, according to two U.S. officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss sensitive matters. 

There were also reports of a team in Turkey tasked with firing the surface-to-air missile at the plane, the U.S. officials said. But after more probes, no team was detected.

As the U.S.-Iran war nears the six-month mark, there is a significant ongoing threat from Iran to kill Mr. Trump, according to the officials. 

The president — who has faced multiple attempts on his life in recent years — has acknowledged the risk, calling himself “number one on the kill list for Iran” in a news conference shortly before leaving Ankara.

The National Security Council, the White House Military Office and the Secret Service made the decision to change planes, two law enforcement officials and a U.S. official said. The decision was coordinated with officials in Washington, D.C.

Before Mr. Trump departed Ankara, he said on Truth Social that he would take the older Air Force One over the newer Qatari jet for “old time’s sake.”

Press footage captured him arriving at the airport and climbing up the stairs of the old Air Force One. Then, a few minutes later, an airport catering truck can be seen backing away from the plane and driving off to a U.S. Air Force-operated C-32A jet.

Mr. Trump was inside the catering truck, along with White House aides Natalie Harp, Walt Nauta and Dan Scavino, people familiar with the matter previously told CBS News. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also joined them on board the C-32A before it flew from Turkey to a U.K. military base.

The plane that was publicly identified as Air Force One flew along the same route, carrying Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, several other top-level White House aides and members of the press corps. Rubio and Bessent were aware that the plane wasn’t carrying the president, sources said, but the reporters and some White House staff were not.

While in the United Kingdom, Mr. Trump shifted to the new, Qatari-donated Air Force One for the second leg of his trip back to D.C.

The use of a decoy aircraft remained a secret until earlier this week, when The Washington Post, CBS News and other outlets reported on the move.

Law enforcement officials told CBS News the switch was part of a misdirection effort, but said it was not intended to put certain individuals at greater risk.

Mr. Trump addressed the decision on Tuesday, telling CBS News’ Nancy Cordes the military and Secret Service “wanted me to go in a different flight” due to threats.

Asked why it was too dangerous for him to fly on Air Force One, but not reporters or his staff, Mr. Trump said: “I think, actually, the plane that I flew on was at greater risk.”

The president told reporters he was not surprised or worried.

“I have a lot of threats,” he said. “Any consequential president has a lot of threats.”