New Air Force One Slide Deployment Delays Trump 15 Minutes as Safety Questions Persist
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 9
New Air Force One Slide Deployment Delays Trump 15 Minutes as Safety Questions Persist
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 9
Summary
An emergency slide accidentally inflated on the new Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, delaying President Trump’s departure to Dallas by about 15 minutes before the plane eventually took off.
Trump told reporters officials were checking the slide to ensure “everything works perfectly,” but a person familiar with the episode said the deployment was accidental.
The aircraft is the Qatari-donated jet that was rapidly retrofitted after the U.S. took ownership, even though it lacked defensive capabilities found on older presidential planes.
July’s NATO trip already intensified scrutiny after security concerns arose over Trump flying the Qatari plane, and his return from Turkey ultimately used a military jet while an older Air Force One served as a decoy.