WASHINGTON—When The Washington Post reported on Aug. 10 that President Donald Trump had secretly switched aircraft in Turkey last month in what resembled a scene from a James Bond movie, attention quickly turned to the long history of U.S. presidents using decoy and other security measures while traveling to high-risk locations.
The Washington Post reported that after last month’s NATO summit, Trump secretly departed Turkey on a different military aircraft instead of Air Force One. This “extraordinary operation” that took place in Ankara on July 8 was reportedly in response to an Iranian assassination threat and involved transferring Trump to the alternate aircraft—an Air Force C-32A—using a catering truck.
The Epoch Times was unable to independently verify the Post’s report. The White House did not reply to a request for comment and has not confirmed or denied the report as of publication. However, news of the Hollywood-style operation has sparked significant interest and discussion in the United States and globally.
Tony Shaffer, a former senior intelligence officer with the Department of Defense, told The Epoch Times that the episode involving Trump’s visit to Turkey highlights a routine level of secrecy involving the president’s travel arrangements. Shaffer noted the presidential helicopter Marine One routinely flies alongside multiple decoy aircraft.
“The best deceptions are always hidden in place. That is to say, you look at things; it’s there, and you don’t see it.”
While Shaffer assessed that the protective measures employed during the Turkey trip are repeatable, he raised concerns about such procedures being publicized.
“This is not going to change the ability of the Secret Service and the Department of War to protect him. But it does, you know, kind of highlight one of the techniques that they'll probably use again at some point. But you don’t know when they’re going to do it.”
The Washington Post’s report outlines the recent deception operation conducted by the Secret Service and the Department of War.
Trump departed from Esenboga Airport on July 8 following the NATO summit held in Ankara.
Airport footage shows Trump boarding Air Force One at approximately 8:24 p.m. local time. The video also captures an elevated catering truck on the other side of the plane.
According to the report, minutes after boarding, Trump and several aides were secretly moved into a catering truck’s elevated container through a separate door, out of camera view.
Approximately five minutes later, according to the report, the container was lowered into the back of the truck, which then departed.
After that, the truck secretly moved the president and his aides to the nearby, smaller C-32A plane, while the reporters and some White House staff stayed on Air Force One, according to the report.
The Post’s reporting relied on reviewed materials, a U.S. official who knew about the operation, and another source familiar with the president’s travel. However, Trump was not visible at any point during the operation.
Hours before the secret operation, Trump announced on social media that he would use the “former Air Force One” for his departure from Ankara instead of the newer Boeing 747-8, which had been gifted by Qatar to the United States.
He explained in a Truth Social post that he wanted U.S. troops stationed in Britain to have a chance to see the new Air Force One.
“To honor our brave men and women of the Military,” Trump wrote, “we are sending the brand new, and truly spectacular, Air Force One to Mildenhall Air Force Base, in the United Kingdom.”
“For old time’s sake,” Trump added, “we’ll be taking the former Air Force One, from Turkey to Mildenhall, a short trip that is totally worth doing in order to give our Great Military Heroes a chance to appreciate our beautiful new addition to the Air Force Fleet!”
The abrupt decision raised concerns about the safety of the Qatar-provided aircraft. The White House later stated that the new Air Force One will receive defensive capabilities and additional security upgrades.
At approximately 10:56 p.m. local time on July 8, Trump was seen descending the stairs from the legacy Air Force One in the United Kingdom.
A White House press pool report that evening said the flight was “uneventful” with “no visitors to the press cabin.” The reporters were also asked to close their window shades during the flight.
It’s unclear how Trump transferred from the C-32A to the legacy Air Force One after landing at Mildenhall.
However, based on publicly available flight tracking data, the Post claimed that the new Air Force One landed at Mildenhall at 6:26 p.m. local time, followed by a C-32A at approximately 10:20 p.m., and the legacy Air Force One several minutes later.
After meeting with U.S. service members, the president boarded the new Air Force One in the UK at approximately 11 p.m. local time, accompanied by staff and press, to return to Washington.
This time, Trump visited the press cabin and answered questions about threats from Iran, but did not mention the secret operation.
“I have a threat all the time. I’m No. 1 on their list before you,” Trump told reporters.
“But if I go, you go. Right?” he added. “Perhaps someday you want to change professions.”
Past Incidents
In the past, the U.S. Secret Service has had to make last-minute changes in response to emerging threat assessments.
During a visit to the Philippines in November 1996, the Secret Service re-routed President Bill Clinton’s motorcade after learning of a bomb planted on a bridge along the president’s intended route.
The Secret Service also employed a decoy technique to protect Clinton during an international trip through Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan in March 2000.
During the first leg of the 2000 trip through South Asia, Clinton had to cancel a planned visit to the Bangladeshi village of Joypura. In interviews with author and presidential historian Taylor Branch, Clinton said that the cancellation decision was informed by intelligence assessments that Al Qaeda had placed assassins along his travel route.
Later during the 2000 South Asia trip, Clinton flew aboard an unmarked plane from India to Pakistan, lagging behind the traditionally marked presidential aircraft. The ruse became apparent as Clinton was seen disembarking the second plane in Pakistan.
At other times, presidents have made surprise visits to high-risk areas and kept their travel arrangements under wraps.
In May 2012, President Barack Obama paid a surprise visit to U.S. troops at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan.
Trump also visited Bagram on Nov. 28, 2019, for a surprise Thanksgiving visit with the troops. At the time, the White House released public travel schedule updates indicating Trump was on his way to South Florida.
