Updated

Updated · The New York Times · Aug 13

Late-Night Hosts Mock Trump Over Air Force One Exit, Leaving Staff Behind in Catering Container

Updated

Updated · The New York Times · Aug 13

Late-Night Hosts Mock Trump Over Air Force One Exit, Leaving Staff Behind in Catering Container

Q: What specific threats prompted the unprecedented use of a catering truck to secretly switch the President's aircraft?

The aircraft switch was prompted by a **credible Iranian threat against the president’s plane**, with U.S. officials saying intelligence pointed to a possible **surface-to-air or shoulder-fired missile attack** as Trump departed Ankara. According to the reporting, the NSA, CIA and Turkey’s intelligence service picked up information suggesting Iran or Iran-linked operatives were considering targeting the presidential aircraft. Some accounts said officials had reports of a person near the NATO summit area who had been seen with a **portable shoulder-fired missile**, and CBS reported intelligence streams indicated a possible plan to **fire a missile at Air Force One**. Other reports described concern about a possible **assassination attempt** tied to Iran. Officials viewed the threat as unusually serious because it was described as **specific and credible**, and because Iranian actors were believed to have detailed knowledge of Trump’s movements in Turkey. That led the Secret Service, White House Military Office and other security officials to use a deception plan: Trump appeared to board Air Force One, then was moved in a catering truck to a smaller **C-32A** military aircraft while the larger jet continued as a decoy. Trump later confirmed that the Secret Service and military directed him to take a different plane because of a threat, though the White House has not publicly released the full intelligence behind the decision.

3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 13

Anthony Anderson and Jimmy Fallon led Wednesday’s late-night jokes after new details surfaced about Trump’s covert exit from Air Force One in a catering container last month.
The punchlines centered on staffers allegedly left aboard the plane, with Fallon joking that Trump “left Marco Rubio on board” and Anderson dubbing the episode “Operation Pig in a Blanket.”
The roundup also folded in another Trump-world target: Fallon and Anderson mocked White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt’s announced resignation in a separate string of jokes.
The segment reflects how the unusual Air Force One departure has shifted from a political story into a broader pop-culture punchline on network comedy shows.