President Donald Trump was secretly transferred to a smaller military aircraft via an airport catering truck after departing last month's NATO summit in Ankara, a deception operation triggered by a credible Iranian assassination threat, according to a US official.
Trump had boarded the older Air Force One jumbo jet in full view of television cameras before being smuggled unseen into a catering container positioned beside the aircraft. The truck transported him to a C-32A military plane, which flew him to Britain, arriving at around 10:20 p.m. local time. Some White House staff who boarded the decoy jet reportedly did not know Trump was not on the aircraft.
The administration had previously stated Trump left Turkey on July 8 aboard the former Air Force One. The Ankara trip marked the first international voyage for the new Boeing 747-8, a gift from Qatar. The operation followed joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran in February.