Story thread · 122 reports / 92 sources

Trump pulled 'elaborate ruse' with 'decoy' Air Force One to avoid assassination: report

rawstory.com · 18h · first reportShare

President Donald Trump and his staff orchestrated an "elaborate ruse" to sneak out of Turkey on a military aircraft, leaving the press on a "decoy" Air Force One flight. The elaborate deception was triggered by a credible Iranian assassination threat detected as Trump left the NATO summit in Turkey , reported The Washington Post on Monday. The operation was so tightly held that it fooled even people traveling with the president. "The clandestine mission ... was carried out unbeknownst to journalists and some White House staff members," according to the report. The scramble followed intelligence pointing to a possible plot by Iran and allied proxy groups to fire a missile at Trump's plane, according to multiple outlets including CBS News and The New York Times. Trump had flown to Ankara aboard the flashy new $400 million Boeing 747-8 given by Qatar , but the Secret Service swapped him onto one of the decades-old VC-25A jets that traditionally carry the Air Force One call sign for the fl